Twice Fated
by VKdViKing
Summary: Naruto and Namiko are twins with each having half of Kyuubi's chakra sealed in them. Instead of letting them grow up on their own, the Third decided to have Tsunade raise them. How will that go? Very Strong Naruto and Namiko and their friends. All pairings canon except Namiko's. Full Summary inside. My first fanfic. M for violance and language. OMAKE's kinda include Sasuke bashing.
1. The Children of Legacy

Hello. This is VKdViKing. This is my first fanfic, so please bear with me.

I have been inspired by many other fanfics on this very website. I know very well the terror on cliche too. So I know these first few episodes will come as cliche to experienced readers. The first one is basically a retelling of the day Naruto was born except with a few changes. So please bear with me on this.

The initial setting of the story is inspired by Psycho G's Neo Yondaime Hokage.

This is the link: s/3201446/1/

Sadly it didn't end.

 **CHAPTER UPDATED ON 01/06/2019.**

Onto Summary,

Instead of only Naruto, he was born with a twin sister on October 10th. After the Kyuubi attack, half of his chakra was sealed in Naruto and another half in his twin sister, Namiko. They are taken in by Tsunade and raised as Senjus instead of Namikazes and Uzumakis. They gain a lot of power and receive training from two Sannins from early on. How will the story change?

Pairings are canon except for Namiko since she is an OC. Her pairing will be revealed afterwards. Others who didn't get a pairing in canon, may or may not get it. Very strong Naruto and Namiko, along with others in his generation.

"Speaking"

"YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

Before I forget, **Naruto franchise does not belong to me. It belongs to Kishimoto Sensei.**

* * *

Chapter 1: The Children of Legacy

Somewhere, a little far away from Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaves, from inside a cave-like structure a scream loud enough to be heard in all the Great Five Nations was heard.

"AAAHHH! IT HURTS, YOU KNOW!"

Inside that cave were four people. The blond-haired, blue-eyed village leader, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, was kneeling from the side of a stone slab. His wife, a beautiful woman with long red hair, that was currently splayed across so wide that it looked like a mattress on the makeshift bed, was laying on that slab, panting and tired.

It was the 10th of October. Kushina Uzumaki Namikaze was due to give birth to her twins that day and that was exactly what was happening inside the cave. Now, normally deliveries were done in a hospital, which was obviously present in a great village like Konoha. But Kushina was a special case. Sealed inside her was one of the nine Great Tailed Beasts (Bijuu), the Kyuubi no Kitsune (The Nine-Tailed Fox). People like her were called Jinchuurikis, literally meaning a human sacrifice. And a closely guarded secret about Jinchuurikis, females in particular, was that their seals tended to weaken during childbirth. Hence why Kushina's delivery was being done in a remote cave.

The Third Hokage's wife, Biwako Sarutobi, was at the base of the makeshift bed helping Kushina in the delivery. Lastly, was the midwife, Taji, beside Biwako, ready to provide any assistance.

The Fourth Hokage was desperately trying to keep the seal holding the Kyuubi inside Kushina intact while she was in her labour.

"C' mon out, Naruto, Namiko. You stay inside Kyuubi!" cried Minato.

"I can see the head!" Biwako announced.

Not long after, the cave was filled with a baby's cry.

"Well, Minato it looks like your eldest will be your son, Naruto. We shall wait for your daughter, till then strengthen the seal," Biwako told the new father and handed Naruto to Taji for his post-birth cleanup.

Minato, even though he was dying to see his first child, moved on to do as told. Meanwhile, Kushina took the time for a greatly needed rest. She too wanted to hold her son but knew she would have to wait until his sister joined him. She was in a lot of pain too.

Kushina didn't get much time to rest though. Almost exactly after five minutes, the cave was again filled with her cries, which triggered the rest of the occupants to resume their respective work.

This time though it didn't take much longer, as Namiko seemed quite eager to come out to meet her parents and join her brother.

With a last cry from Kushina, the only sound that remained in the cave were the cries of two babies. Both with the same blond hair as their father but with unique three whisker-like markings on each of their cheeks.

"Congratulations Minato, you got two healthy babies." Biwako happily informed.

Minato, not able to stop himself anymore, stepped up to hold his new family but was shoved aside by the Third's wife.

"Mother first, Father second."

Leaving Minato sulking in a corner, Biwako and Taji walked over to Kushina's head so that she could meet her children first time outside in the living world.

"So we finally meet, eh Naruto, Namiko," Kushina said softly looking at two of her newest most precious creations with affection that only a mother could have. She could not believe that she was able to bring such wonderful babies into the world.

"Now let's get these two properly cleaned up and ready. Make sure to strengthen the seal again, Minato." The Third's wife ordered before she and her assistant moved on to make sure the babies were clean and ready.

"Okay now for the Seal," Minato said folding his sleeves before starting to work on the seal.

"Minato, Thank you," Kushina's voice almost came as a whisper because of the exhaustion that was now settling in.

Minato shook his head, "I should be thanking you Kushina. You added two more precious people to my family."

A sudden scream distracted both of them and made them look towards the source.

"Fourth Hokage Minato, step away from the Jinchuriki." threatened a new figure standing at the entrance of the cave over the lifeless bodies of the Third's wife and Taji, with the newly born twins in his arms ready to kill them.

Minato was shocked, ' _How did he get past the ANBU **and** the barrier?_'

"Just wait a minute, just let's be calm, Okay!" Minato tried desperately to dissolve the situation without harming his only minutes old children.

"Speak for yourselves, Fourth Hokage. I'm as calm as I can be." said the unknown figure. He- Minato assumed by his voice- was wearing an orange mask with a fire-like pattern on it and a black robe completely concealing his body.

"Step away from the Jinchuriki or do you not care what happens to the brats?" He threatened again before flinging both infants into the air.

Minato, showing his speed and reflexes, plucked both of them from the air and stuck to the wall using his chakra.

"Leave it to the Yellow Flash of the Leaf, but what about the next one?" The Masked Man said and threw a kunai with an explosive tag towards the father-children trio.

Minato knew he couldn't dodge both the kunai and explosion. So he used the technique he was famous for and teleported away.

* * *

Appearing in one of his safe houses he breathed a sigh of relief.

"He forced me to use the Hiraishin and separated us from Kushina." He thought aloud.

He set the two crying babies on a bed, "Don't worry I will save your mother. Stay safe both of you." He assured before teleporting back.

* * *

The masked man had already taken Kushina to another place and tied her to pillar-like rocks on either side, exposing the seal on her stomach.

"Okay, now what do you want?", Kushina asked with a much-laboured breath. She was naturally still feeling the after-effects of childbirth.

"I'm going to extract the Kyuubi from you and crush the Leaf." The Masked Man confessed casually as if he was describing the weather.

"Minato's teleportation Jutsu allows him to move instantly to locations that are marked with Jutsu formulas. Those markings are incorporated into your sealing formula. That way, Minato can protect you all the time. But he is far away now. The seal has weakened due to childbirth. Do you have any idea how long I've waited for this moment?" He explained further.

The single eye, visible through the lone hole in his mask, glowed red, tomoe marks spinning inside.

 _'Sharingan!'_ Kushina thought before her world burst into pain.

Inside Kushina, the chains holding the Kyuubi started to melt. Its eyes taking the same form as the masked man.

"Come on out Kyuubi." The Masked Man commanded.

With a mighty roar, a giant mass of red chakra came pouring out of Kushina, before solidifying into a giant red-orange fox with nine swinging tails behind him.

His, or rather Kushina's task complete, the masked man shifted his focus on the nine tails. This, in turn, released Kushina from her bindings, making her collapse onto the rock almost completely out of energy.

"Good, now we will head to the Hidden Leaf village." The Masked Man stated not caring about the now-former Jinchuuriki.

"W-wait..." Kushina managed to breath out.

The Masked Man stopped and looked back at Kushina, "You Uzumakis are simply amazing. You don't die right away after the tailed beast is extracted." He said before he had a thought. "You were the Kyuubi's Jinchuriki. It's only fitting you die by his hands." He added mentally ordering his new pet.

The Kyuubi raised one of its claws and thrust it at Kushina. Unfortunately, or fortunately for Kushina, it only hit the empty ground.

At a distance, Minato appeared with Kushina in his arms on top of a tree.

"You really are as quick as a Flash," The Masked Man complimented.

"M...minato, my babies…." Kushina asked.

"They are safe," Minato assured.

"Thank god. Minato, the masked man, he is going to use the Kyuubi to destroy the Leaf." Kushina told him.

Minato didn't respond to that. He just teleported them back to their babies.

"He flew away. Hmph, no matter let's get to Konoha." The Masked Man said before turning back towards Konoha.

* * *

Again, Minato appeared in his safe house in a flash of yellow, now with Kushina in his arms. He laid her on the bed beside her twins.

Kushina pulled her babies close, "Minato, Why?" She asked.

It was probably because he was her husband, that he could understand such a vague question, "Never mind that, just stay with them."

Kushina looked at her babies before looking up again and saw Minato donning his Hokage cloak, "Thank you, and come back safe."

"I'll be right back.", he replied before vanishing again.

* * *

Konoha

Unlike the outside of the Leaf village, the inside was completely calm, ignorant of what was approaching.

In one of the alleys, a black swirl suddenly formed out of thin air before the Masked Man appeared from it.

"Summoning Jutsu," he said slamming his hands on the ground. A sealing matrix spread on the ground followed by a massive puff of white smoke.

The sudden spike of the enormous amount of chakra startled all the ninjas in the village, including the former Hokage. Hiruzen Sarutobi was calmly scribbling on a scroll when an ANBU appeared at his window. Before he could say anything though, Hiruzen's brush snapped in half. Given the chakra he felt just now, he already knew something had gone wrong during the Kushina's childbirth. He wanted to believe that the worst hadn't come to pass but as a former Hokage, he had a job to do.

"Alert all the able! We have to push the Kyuubi out of the village before we can subdue him." He ordered the ANBU, who just nodded and shimmered away.

Meanwhile, the Kyuubi had finally appeared out of the cloud of smoke. It didn't waste much time and with a feral roar started wreaking havoc on everything in its way.

As per the orders of their former Hokage, Shinobis of all rank appeared and engaged the mighty beast to keep it at bay.

Said former Hokage also came up, donned in his battle armour and stated, "We have to drive him out of the village!"

He immediately summoned the Monkey King Enma and had him to transform in his Adamantine staff. He extended the staff and started pushing the Kyuubi out of the village.

* * *

Elsewhere

Minato and the Masked Man were currently engaged in their own battle.

When Minato had initially gone to face the Kyuubi, it tried to fire a concentrated chakra ball, a Tailed Beast Bomb at him, which he was able to deflect using a Teleportation barrier. But before he could take any other steps to stop the Kyuubi, he was forced to leave the place when the Masked Man suddenly appeared behind him and tried to pull him inside a vortex.

 _'He has a teleportation jutsu. That's how he was able to grab Kushina and move so quickly. He defeated the ANBU Black Ops assigned to Lord Third, got past my highest level barrier and knew that the Kyuubi's seal will weaken during childbirth. Even more than that, he undid the Kyuubi's seal and tamed him. He slipped in and out of the village's barrier without triggering any alarms. As far as I know, there's only one Shinobi who can do all that.'_ Minato analyzed the situation in his mind.

"Are you, Madara Uchiha?" Minato asked, "No, that would be impossible. He's dead after all." He continued, answering his own question.

"Hmm, I wonder about that." The Masked Man stated off-handedly while taking off his hood.

"In the end, it doesn't matter who you are. But why attack the Hidden leaf?" Minato asked again.

"What do you want to hear? I could say I did it on a whim or that I planned it or it was for war or… it was for peace." The Masked Man answered cryptically. Chains dropped from his right sleeve, attached to his hand by a cufflink. He proceeded to attach the other end it to his left-hand with another cufflink.

"Now that I've freed the Kyuubi there is no hope for any of you." He claimed.

Both fighters lunged towards each other. Minato tried to slash him with his kunai but to his surprise, he passed right through his opponent, right into the masked man's chains. He quickly teleported away from it to one of his kunais.

 _'He dematerialized himself before my attack and materialized right after to attack me. I've to use that window to attack.'_ Minato thought quickly assessing the situation.

With that, both lunged towards each other again. This time instead of slashing with the kunai, Minato threw his kunai at his opponent's head.

The Masked Man didn't seem to care. And rightfully so, as it passed through his head harmlessly. He extended his hand to touch Minato and exclaimed, "I win."

Just then Minato teleported himself to his thrown kunai, a spiralling blue sphere ready in his other hand. He slammed the attack on his opponent's back, shredding his cloak. Before disengaging from his enemy he marked him with his sealing formula and vanished.

The Masked Man himself appeared above a rock with an injured arm which oddly looked like it was melting.

In a blink of an eye, Minato teleported to the masked man and applied another seal on him.

"A contract seal, trying to separate the Kyuubi from me?" the Masked Man asked though it was more like a statement.

"The Kyuubi is no longer yours," Minato replied before disengaging again.

"You are worthy of your title Fourth Hokage. You injured me and separated me from the Kyuubi but he will be mine one day. I shall rule the world and there are plenty of ways to do that." The Masked Man gave his parting words, leaving in the form of swirl swirling around his left eye.

 _'By the tone he used, he was not joking around.'_ Minato thought before he vanished too.

* * *

Outside the village with Kyuubi

The Kyuubi was preparing another Tailed Beast Bomb when it was interrupted by a giant toad falling on top of it.

"It's the Fourth Hokage." someone exclaimed obviously relieved to see their Hokage on the top of the toad.

"Hold him down for me, Gamabunta," Minato requested the giant amphibian.

 **"That is going to be tough, even for me,"** Gamabunta answered from atop the Kyuubi.

Just when the Kyuubi was about to unleash its attack it vanished leaving the Toad boss on the ground.

A giant explosion occurred far away into the mountains causing the former Hokage as well as his subordinates to hurry towards it.

* * *

Somewhere in the mountains

Minato appeared with his wife by his side and his two children in his arms.

 _'I need to erect a barrier but my chakra is too low.'_ thought the Fourth.

"I can still do it Minato," his wife said reading his mind. Glowing chains emerged from her back, wrapping around the Tailed beast, immobilizing the Kyuubi and erecting a barrier.

Minato then explained his plan to seal half of Kyuubi in Naruto and the other half in Namiko. Kushina was, quite obviously, not at all sold on the idea. She did not want to put such a burden on her children. She was a Jinchuuriki, but she had already known, somewhat, what she was getting into. But her babies were not been given any choice in the matter. She also didn't want Minato to use the Jutsu that she knew he was planning. She was already aware that she didn't have much time left in the world with the Kyuubi extracted from her. But if Minato used that Jutsu, not only will her babies be left motherless, they will become orphans. And she absolutely loathed that idea.

But Minato was stubborn in his decision. He explained how they were a family of shinobis and as the Hokage, he was supposed to save the village just like he was supposed to save his children as their father.

"Kushina save your chakra. I will divide your chakra and put them in their seal so you can meet them for a short time and teach them to control the Kyuubi's chakra." He said.

"After what happened today, I'm certain of two things. One: that the masked man will bring catastrophe to the shinobi world and Two: that these two will be the ones to stop him." This more or less convinced Kushina that she was not going to win this argument. So she had to relent, albeit very reluctantly.

With that settled, he started going through some hand seals and summoned two ritual alters. Unfortunately, the Kyuubi saw this and knew what was going to happen. It obviously didn't want to be sealed again. The Kyuubi saw his chance when after placing both the babies on the alters, Minato went to check on Kushina. She had fallen down due to being weak after everything that she went through that day. Using Minato's absence, the Kyuubi tried to kill his would-be vessels.

Minato and Kushina, in a hasty effort to save their children, jumped in the way and stopped Kyuubi's claw just before it touched them. Sadly that in-turn resulted in them getting impaled on the fox's claws instead. Minato still went on and summoned Geratora, a toad with scroll-shaped belly and gave him the key to the seals.

"We are not going to see them for a while, so go ahead tell them what you want," Minato told his wife.

The dying mother tearfully looked at her preciouses, "Grow strong, both of you, even with your burden. Eat well, bathe every day and get your sleep. And be wary of the perverted sensei your father had, that Godfather of yours. And Naruto, protect your sister and look after her, you will be the eldest man in the family now. Find someone like me and your father both of you and don't get fixated on the first girl or boy you see and…and…Ohh I wanna tell you so much but….just stay safe and know that I love you both. Sorry, Minato I took your time." she told her children and their father.

"Naruto, Namiko, unlike your talkative mom…just…set it all," Minato told them before making a final hand seal.

"Eight Trigrams Seal"

And with a bright flash of light, the Kyuubi was gone, each baby getting half of its chakra sealed into them. What remained was Minato and Kushina lying on the ground and two babies on the alters, crying as if they were aware of everything that transpired.

The barrier that was preventing anyone to get close finally went down and the Third Hokage rushed towards the family with two other shinobis behind him. After everything that happened and witnessing everything that transpired inside the barrier, he was really shocked and surprised when Kushina got up again.

"Lord Third, m...my son Naruto has Kyuubi's Yang half of the Chakra and my daughter Namiko has its Yin Half. Please take care of them." Kushina requested from the Old Hokage. Then looking at her two precious gifts, who were still crying, for the last time she continued, "Ssshhh my babies, it's okay, mommy is just going to sleep. I love you..." And with the last breath, she fell.

The old Hokage couldn't believe it. On one same day, the Fourth Hokage and his wife died, sacrificing not only themselves but their newly born children for the sake of the village.

He looked at the twins, who had stopped crying pacified by their mother, and told the shinobi to take them and bring them to his office.

The coming days were not looking good. He just knew it.

The Professor wasn't wrong about that at all.

* * *

OMAKE 1

A six-year-old Itachi Uchiha was running around with his three months old brother, Sasuke, during the whole chaos that was the Kyuubi attack. He was sitting in the porch of the house with his brother while his parents were at a clan meeting when suddenly the Kyuubi appeared in a puff of smoke. Because of Kyuubi's closeness to the Uchiha clan compound, Itachi had to leave his house and had found himself running through some alleyways. He spotted his friend, Izumi Uchiha, and told her to join.

Once he thought he was far away from the Kyuubi's reach he stopped. He noticed the nameplate of the house he was standing in front of.

"Haruno." He read it offhandedly.

"Um…Did you say something, Itachi-kun?" Izumi asked him.

Just as Itachi was about to answer, he saw the Kyuubi making some kind of ball out of thin air. Before he could confirm what it was, the Kyuubi fired it. Unfortunately for him, it fired the ball in their direction. He could see the destruction the ball was causing in its path, but could not do anything. Both Izumi and Itachi watched the ball approaching them with rising dread.

* * *

Haruno residence

In the house behind the three Uchihas, Kizashi and Mebuki Haruno along with their newborn daughter Sakura were sitting huddled in a corner. Both of them could hear the sound of destruction coming closer, but the window, being on the side opposite to the one where Kyuubi was, didn't show anything. So they were reduced to only listening on whatever was going on outside. This kept them from realizing their impending doom.

* * *

In a flash of light, for the Uchihas and Harunos, everything ended. Right after going through the Uchihas and the Haruno residence the Tailed Beast Ball travelled upwards towards the waiting Space-Time net the Fourth Hokage had created.

This was the early end of the incarnation of Indra.

* * *

Authors Notes:

So, that was the first chapter. Do tell how did you think it was? The chapter may seem rushed, that is because most of it was exactly like cannon with very slight changes. The change starts with the second chapter.

The omake will make it seem I'm a Sasuke and Sakura hater. I am somewhat. What I truly hate is how the show is named Naruto but is completely based on Sharingan and Uchihas. Seriously the Sharingan is overpowered. So yeah, there will be omakes in many chapters showing Sasuke, Sakura and few others (as collaterals) dying various ways. Don't like it, please skip it.

That's all. Till next chapter.


	2. Council Problems

Very much thanks for all the follows and reviews.

I realised I didn't say anything about the update cycle before. I will try to update twice every week. Once on Saturday and any other day I get free. Sorry about that uncertainty.

 **CHAPTER UPDATE ON 01/06/2019**

I will be replying to some comments here in the beginning.

 **Sonicprophet:** \- Don't worry. I will keep the collateral as minimum as I can.

 **mrsancog:** \- Thanks for the review and suggestion. But the pairings are mostly decided. And Shisui and Namiko is a pairing I don't really see working. He is almost 10 years older and making their contact is really difficult. Most of all, I still need Shisui to give Itachi his Mangekyo. I'm really sorry.

 **bankai777:** \- Thanks for your review. Well, I have not written the team formation chapter yet but I do have the idea I want to use. I will take your suggestion into consideration. But I think, out of all 3 rookie teams, the original team 10 is most efficient in capture and interrogation. So breaking team 10 will not be a good idea. Though I will still try if I can set her there. It will be difficult since I would have to change Namiko's skill set to fit team 10.

"Speaking"

"YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

I don't know why I have to write this every time or even if I have to do it or not since I did it in the first chapter. But I will do it anyway since pretty much everyone does it, so **Naruto franchise does not belong to me. Kishimoto-sensei owns it**.

* * *

Chapter 2: Council Problems

Hokage's Office

The Third was tired. Of course, he was, everyone was, after the day's battle with the Kyuubi anyone would be. There was a huge loss of shinobi due to the attack, some were injured but will recover after some time but some were deemed unfit to work further as shinobis. Thousands of civilians died due to their panicking. But at last, the fight was over but at the cost of their Hokage and his wife.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, Third Hokage, was in his office looking at the crib holding two soundly sleeping babies. Not taking kindly to being handled by someone who was not their mother or father, they woke up and resumed their crying. It took time to calm them down. Made orphans just after a few hours of being born, somehow it seemed they both were unconsciously aware of the fact. When they were awake, their open eyes reminded him of Minato. That blond hair and sea blue eyes. He was sure the Naruto would grow up to be just like his father. Though Namiko at the moment looked like an exact copy of her brother, Hiruzen believed she would also be a beauty to behold when she got older. Just like her mother.

He was broken from his thoughts by an ANBU shimmering into existence in his office.

"Lord Third, everyone has assembled for the meeting." the ANBU informed.

Hiruzen sighed, "Very well, take the twins. We must inform them of the situation."

And with that, the old Hokage, already dreading the upcoming meeting, started trudging towards the council room, the ANBU behind him holding the children. He was interrupted by a voice he was very glad to hear.

"So it's true then, he's dead. I was really hoping that it was just a rumour." said the person, the tone of his voice clearly expressing the sadness in it.

"Yes, it saddens me that his term as Hokage was shortened like this and on what would have been his most joyous day too." The old Hokage replied to the person without turning towards him.

The person saw the twin mop of blond hair in ANBU's arms and asked, "That them?"

The Third turned to the person and nodded, "Yes, Jiraiya, they are your Godchildren."

The now known Jiraiya, also known as the Toad Sage, one of the three legendary Sannins, walked towards the ANBU and asked him to hand the twins. The Toad Sage looked at the boy to whom he was a Godfather. Was kind of hard to differentiate between the boy and girl as both seemed almost exactly alike down to their whisker marks. But he recognized him anyway. He knew this boy would grow to be a carbon copy of his father. Then he looked at the girl, though he knew even if she was not that different looking from her brother now, she will turn to be quite beautiful just like her mother. He just hoped none of them inherited her temper.

' _Even in death, you left a pair just like yourselves, eh, Minato, Kushina. If they are anything like you two then Konoha will have another set of Yellow Flash and Red-Hot Habanero. I will make sure of it._ '

"Let's go, old man, those old cots you used to call teammates are waiting. I kind of know what they will say after they come to know the truth about Kyuubi and Minato." The Toad Sannin half-joked.

"I have to tell them about the Kyuubi but I do not plan on informing them about the twins' parentage." the Hokage stated with a sad face.

If the Sannin was shocked, he did well not to let it show and asked calmly, "Why not?"

"They will be in grave danger from those that sought Minato's death just for being his children." The Hokage explained.

"Hmm, not that I think Iwa would want to go to war because of two babies, but I understand. But that will cause some other problems, problems that need not surface from outside the village." the Sage said scrunching his face in a scowl.

Hiruzen spoke with a sigh, "Yes, I fear you are right. But I'm thinking of something to prevent something like that happening to them."

"Let's first explain the situation. Maybe we can think of something then?" Jiraiya said and started walking with his old sensei to the meeting room.

* * *

Meeting room

The council of Village Hidden in the Leaves usually only had three people including the Hokage. But this time, because of the magnitude of the crisis and the sheer number of people affected by it, a different kind of meeting was taking place. The whole meeting room was divided into three sections.

First being the Shinobi section having the current heads of all the major clans in Konoha. These clans consisted of Nara, Yamanaka, Akimichi, Hyuuga, Uchiha, Inuzuka, Aburame, Kurama and Sarutobi. There was a seat added recently for the addition of a new clan: The Namikaze. But fate chose to keep the seat vacant just after someone was chosen for it. The clan heads right now occupying the seats were Shikaku Nara, Inoichi Yamanaka, Chouza Akimichi, Hiashi Hyuuga, Fugaku Uchiha, Tsume Inuzuka, Shibi Aburame and Murakumo Kurama. The Sarutobi and Namikaze seats were still unoccupied.

The Second was the Civilian section. Since the damage was not limited to just shinobis and extended to the civilians and their businesses as well, important figures from the civilian side from merchant guild head to the builders head were called to the meeting, to asses the total damage done to the infrastructure of the village and to make decisions for rebuilding.

The Third was the original council with three occupants. They were the Third Hokage's old teammates. Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado and Danzo Shimura. While Koharu and Homura with the Hokage made the original council, Danzo was also called in sometimes to advise on some military aspects.

Now, one would expect the room to be full of chatter with the number of people gathered inside. But the situation obviously kept everyone locked into their own thoughts causing a thick silence to permeate the room. The silence along with whatever thoughts were running through the occupants' mind was broken when the door to the room opened to let the former Hokage through with Jiraiya in tow holding the two babies.

Standard etiquette actually required each of them to stand and bow to the Hokage but right now none of them in the meeting room was aware, that the Fourth Hokage was dead. They saw Hiruzen reach the Sarutobi clan seat but were surprised when he passed that and stood behind the Hokage seat. The shinobis, former shinobis and some civilians were quick to understand the implications of such gesture but kept quiet, so as not to jump to conclusions. Unfortunately not all the Civilians were as bright.

"Why are you standing there Lord Third? Where is Lord Fourth?" asked one person from the Civilian side.

The Hokage looked at every member and announced sadly, "Unfortunately Minato Namikaze did not survive the fight with Kyuubi after its defeat."

The Civilian side was shocked while the Shinobi side and the advisers just bowed their head in having their assumptions confirmed.

The Third then continued, "Now let's get on with the meeting. Our first agenda today is rebuilding of the village."

"But Lord Third what about the Hokage position and who are those children in the arms of Lord Jiraiya?" asked the same civilian.

"Before death, Minato reinstated me as the Hokage so I'll grant his wish and take the mantle back till I find a worthy successor again." The Third Hokage announced. He knew no such thing had happened, but the village was in a dire situation, he did not have the leisure to seek out a new Hokage candidate. He also knew someone who was desperately waiting for just that.

Danzo, who had gained a hopeful look in his eyes before, lost their shine. He finally saw a chance to become the Hokage but his old rival beat him to it, again.

Hiruzen continued, "As for these two infants. They, along with Minato and his wife, are today's heroes for saving Konoha."

And now everyone was confused. Minato, they could understand. Kushina, to some extent. But what could two infants do?

"Hokage-sama, we don't understand how did these two children participate in the battle and what about Lady Kushina, where is she?" the Yamanaka clan head asked. He along with a few others knew of Kushina's status as a Jinchuuriki. They knew what Kyuubi's appearance meant. When the tailed beasts were extracted from Jinchuurikis, they inevitably died. Being an Uzumaki was the only thing that kept Kushina alive for as long as she did. Though not many were aware that this very day was also Kushina's due date, so couldn't exactly connect the existence of the twins with Kyuubi.

"The Fourth's wife was alongside him during his battle with the Kyuubi. She did not survive the battle either." Answered the now re-instated Hokage sadly.

The whole room except for Hiruzen and Jiraiya were shocked. Some of them knew that Kushina was expecting and were looking forward to welcoming the Young Lord or Lady. Her death meant the Namikaze clan seat would now remain vacant forever.

"And what about the children who are they?" asked a now saddened Chouza.

"These twins lost their parents to the Kyuubi. But that is not all. Minato couldn't kill the Kyuubi, for it is a complete chakra entity and cannot exactly be killed. So he used an S-Class Fuinjutsu to divide and seal half of the Kyuubi in each of these children." the Professor explained. He knew that was not the only reason. He knew the Kyuubi could be killed. But it would just revive in a few years, resulting in them having to try and capture it again. If Minato would have killed the Kyuubi then, Konoha would have been with without any Jinchuuriki, upsetting the balance of power between the five Great Shinobi Villages. As much as he hated to admit it, Kushina and now her children indeed acted as deterrents to anyone wanting to go to war against Konoha.

The day seemed to have come just to surprise those in the meeting. One day they were a peaceful village waiting for their new Young Lord or Lady and the next instead of that they get a set of Jinchuuriki of the same tailed beasts.

Many thoughts were going through their minds.

Like for Danzo, it was along the lines of getting the two infants to raise them to become the best weapon Konoha could have.

In the Shinobi part, Fugaku, Hiashi and Shikaku were looking at the two blond babies like they were trying to figure something out. The looks the twins were getting from them didn't go unnoticed by the Hokage but he refrained from pointing it out at the moment.

The Civilian side was in utter fear. Of course, they didn't understand the basics of something as complex as sealing arts. The only thought running through their minds was that the Fourth somehow failed and the Kyuubi was able to fool the Hokage into believing in such things as Jinchuurikis.

"Hokage-sama, with all due respect, we should execute those two things immediately." One civilian suggested.

Counting the nods the statement was getting from the civilian side clearly told that the thing the Hokage feared came to pass.

"That is right Hokage-sama. Clearly, the Kyuubi has tricked us to believe that it is still sealed. It must have split itself and transformed into human children." another civilian said.

The Shinobi side, Hokage, Jiraiya and the Advisers just looked at him as if he had just grown another head.

' _Are they really that stupid?_ ' thought the Toad Sage.

"So you are saying that you, a civilian, know more about something as complex as Fuinjutsu than the Fourth Hokage himself or do you doubt the word of two Hokages?" the old Hokage asked. A thought of telling them about the existence of previous Jinchuurikis in the Village came to him, but he instantly banished those thoughts. _'If I tell them that Kushina was the previous Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi, they will realize that that is where the Kyuubi came from for the attack and fear the twins even more.'_

"And as the Fourth's sensei and a Seal Master myself, I have checked the seals on their body. They are in fact holding the Kyuubi inside and are not the Kyuubi itself. Are you stating that I'm lying?" explained Jiraiya angrily.

The now terrified civilian said with a shaky voice, "N-no… Not a-at all…L-lord Jiraiya."

"Then the civilian side of this meeting will keep quiet about the matters it does not understand." The Hokage ordered leaving no room for arguments.

"Now the work for the reconstruction of the village is already in order. This meeting was specifically called to discuss what will happen to these two AND no one is going to execute two innocent children." The Hokage asked while stopping the idiotic suggestion one of the civilians was going to offer.

"They should be placed under my care, Hiruzen. I can train them to be excellent shinobi." Danzo suggested. How he was able to keep a straight face during all these, no one knew.

"And be turned into mindless weapons. I don't think so Danzo. I want them to grow up as normal children." Hiruzen said.

All the while gears were turning in Shikaku's head. ' _Why would Hokage discuss something like this in the council even if the kids were Jinchuuriki? He could just have handed them over to an orphanage or have someone trusted adopt them without informing the council and thus avoiding conflicts. This does not add up._ '

The Hokage saw Shikaku still staring at the twins and followed his line of sight. He saw the now awake Naruto looking up to Jiraiya's face with his sea-blue eyes.

Shikaku's eyes went wide after seeing Naruto's eyes ' _No, It can't be._ '

Hiashi was using his Byakugan to check the chakra coils of the babies. He saw them expanding at a fast rate with a mixture of blue and red chakra. He turned off his Byakugan and thought. ' _There is no mistaking it, they both have the same red chakra but…_ ' his thought stopped when looked towards the boy's eyes but unlike Shikaku he kept his Hyuuga composure and stopped himself from reacting outwardly. ' _So that's how it is._ '

Hiruzen saw Shikaku and Hiashi's reactions but what caught his attention was the scene of Jiraiya playing with the infants. Then it clicked, there was someone other than his perverted student who could take care of these two.

"Enough, the meeting has now ended. Until some of you comes to adopt these two with the right intentions they shall stay with me. If that shall not happen, then I have someone in mind who can raise them." the Hokage said.

"Who is this you speak of Hokage-sama?" Hiashi asked suddenly more interested than he was before.

"That I shall tell you if the said person accepts. And further, I deem the information of them being Jinchuuriki as an S-Class secret punishable to death. No one except them or the acting Hokage is to speak about their status in the village. Now you can leave." And with that, both sensei and student left the room with the twins.

The Council started to disperse slowly, everyone with something on their mind.

* * *

Hokage's Office

Hiruzen was looking out of the window of his office while his student was sitting in front of his desk. The twins had gone to sleep again in their crib.

With a motion of his hand, an ANBU wearing a Fox mask appeared in the Hokage's office.

"Yes, Hokage-sama." the ANBU bowed.

"Kitsune, take the scroll on the table and leave immediately with a team of three to search for my student Tsunade. Tell her that she is to return immediately, Hokage's orders or there will be consequences." The order was all that was needed and the ANBU vanished.

Meanwhile, Jiraiya's eyes were as wide as dish plates after hearing his teammate's name.

"Are you thinking what I think you are thinking, old man?" He asked the Hokage.

"Indeed Jiraiya. It is time for her to return."

"She won't accept it. More like she might just kill you for that." Said the present Sannin.

"It is her choice. If she does not accept, those two will have to be raised in an orphanage which I don't look forward to."

"Why Tsunade?" asked Jiraiya with a confused expression

"Would you be willing to do the job?" Hiruzen answered with another question, already knowing the answer.

"Ohh no thank you! Raising children is not my forte and it will also hinder my spy network. I have to be on the road every time which won't be good for them." Jiraiya explained

"Neither would I give them to you Jiraiya. You aren't fit to be a role model, not as a father anyway. And I don't see Orochimaru coming and raising them. Not that I will give them to him in the first place. That's why I chose Tsunade. She will be able to raise them better. In turn, they may be able to cheer her up a little." The elderly Hokage explained.

"Then why not send me to find her. You know I can do it a lot faster," Jiraiya suggested.

"I want her to come back to the village Jiraiya, not send her further away. Also, the twins will need you at some point in time. We wouldn't want you to die now by her hands." Turning serious the Hokage continued, "And I fear that these two have already made enemies inside the village and need better protection till Tsunade arrives."

"Fine. But she will still kill you. I will stay till anything is decided about the two." with that said the Toad Sage left.

"I hope she finds it in her heart to at least do it for these children." spoke the Hokage in the now empty room while looking at the sleeping infants.

* * *

Author's Notes:

Hope you liked this chapter as well.

This chapter didn't have an Omake since there was no opportunity present in this chapter to try and kill Sasuke and Sakura. So, I'm sorry to the readers who liked the first one. From next time, if the opportunity does not present itself, I will use a canon scene to make an omake.

As you may have noticed, I tried to break away from the cliché Shinobi and Civilian Council. You see, I think the civilian council is only put there to make problems for Naruto and some others in the fics and sometimes just for bashing. Well, as I have said before, there will be no bashing. I may make fun of some people here and there, obviously, and then there is my omake section for that particular thing, so I don't need the council since while Naruto and Namiko will not be that much liked in the story they will be in a position where harming them in any way may be hazardous to their health (Hint...Hint...).

I know the "Minato had many enemies" has probably gotten old but currently I'm using it because I intend to use it in the future. And unlike the manga, the twins will be informed about their parents before they come to the brink of their death. The enemies thing is only so the villagers do not spread the news.

Also, this and the next chapter are actually the ones that are very similar to Psycho G's Neo Yondaime Hokage. Again a very good read. So thanks to him again.

People, who do not know more about the Naruto-verse, may not be aware of some terms used in this chapter and the previous and maybe even the next, like Sharingan, Byakugan, Sannin etc. I will try to give as much info about some important things whenever I can. But something or someone mentioned in a chapter may be explained in others, so I ask them to be patient. Though if you liked this fic enough to read even the second chapter, then I suggest you give the Naruto manga or anime a try. (Not advertising. I get nothing out of saying this. Except for maybe my readers' easy understanding.)

Okay then. Till next time.


	3. The Offer

**CHAPTER UPDATED ON 16/02/2020.**

Thank you again for your reviews, follows and favs.

Replies to some reviews:

 **TheWateringWizard :** Thanks and it definitely is going to be Naruhina. I will never write a non-Naruhina fic. EVER.

 **bloody dragon fang:** Thanks. I would like to know what you may have found unsatisfactory. So that I may improve on it. If I can.

"Speaking"

"YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

Now before we start let's do the usual routine, **Naruto franchise, unfortunately, does not belong to me. Kishimoto-sensei has the rights to it.**

* * *

Chapter 3: The Offer

Next-Day: Hokage's Office

The room was quiet. The only occupants in it were an old man in his late 50's and two infants sleeping in their shared crib after their usual hyperactive performance of crying. The old man sighed, he could clearly see their mother in them, even this early in their infanthood. They were definitely going to cause too much trouble in their future, he could just see it. And if the one he selected to be their caretaker accepted the responsibility then the destruction of half of Konoha was inevitable.

As if on cue, the door to his office almost broke out of its hinges with a loud bang. The reason behind it also seemed obviously furious. The old Hokage, however, wasn't surprised, as if he was expecting something like this happening since long.

In strode a beautiful but definitely deadly, if the condition of the door was anything to go by, woman and stood, glaring at the old man. The woman was tall with pale white skin, brown eyes and blonde hair that was done in two pigtails. A violet diamond-shaped marking on her forehead. A crystal necklace around her neck. She wore a grass-green Haori with a kanji for gamble written on the back. Underneath was a grey, kimono-style blouse with no sleeves, held closed by a broad, dark bluish obi that matched her pants.

"How could you threaten to label me as a missing-nin like that, old man? What was so damn important? You know I want nothing to do with this village anymore and absolutely didn't want to come back." The woman practically yelled at him.

The still calm old man gave a small sigh but answered with a look which held great authority over the women, "Tsunade, you are still a Shinobi of Konoha. I've allowed you to move freely anywhere only because of your status. Do not think you're not bound by duty to Konoha anymore."

The woman now known as Tsunade recoiled at that but calmed herself down, enough to further listen to what the old man had to say.

Said old man, after seeing that she wasn't going to interrupt, continued, "As you might have noticed, the village has suffered greatly at the hands of Kyuubi. Adding Minato's as well as Kushina's death, the village is in a dire situation."

Tsunade's face took on a sorrowful expression after confirming the death of her teammate's prized student. She left Konoha shortly after he was born and so was not in the village during his reign as a Hokage. Nevertheless, Tsunade cared about him a lot. Though this fact was not known by many due to there being only a handful of people to have seen them together. So naturally, his death affected her greatly. To her, it was just another reason to stay away from the village.

Minato's wife though, she knew not only as his girlfriend at that time but also as a clan women from a cousin clan and the one who carried the same burden as her own grandmother. She held a high view of Kushina both as a Shinobi and as a person. Not to mention she was also jealous of those beautiful long red locks she had, just like her grandmother. When she heard the news about their wedding, she wanted to come back and congratulate them. But she stopped herself, not wanting to relive the bitter memories that the village always brought her. At least that was what she told others.

And that was not a lie either. Even now, when she passed through those gates, she felt pangs of pain on remembering the losses she suffered. But her old sensei forced her hand this time. She figured it had to be something of great importance for him to threaten her to label as a missing-nin. Also, she didn't want to fight hordes of shinobis out to get her head, even if she could take most of them on easily. She had enough problems with loan sharks.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a wail of crying from the side of the room. Her gaze shifted from the ground to the crib, which she admitted -to herself- to have noticed just now. Not knowing why there was a crib in Hokage's office, she walked up to it anyway to check on the crying baby. She came to an abrupt stop after taking in the sight of a suspiciously familiar blond blob of hair sticking out of the blanket. But was even more surprised to see not one but two of those blobs inside the crib, obviously attached to the two babies, one of which was crying without paying any attention to their new audience and another doing the exact opposite of his twin and almost scrutinizing his observer with his own blue gaze.

Tsunade's breath got caught in her throat when she looked at the boy's ocean blue eyes that were boring into her own with an expression akin to something like 'Who the hell are you?' look, even though it should have been an impossible feat for someone only a day old. Tsunade finally got her senses back and took the one crying – which she somehow knew was a girl – and started to calm her down. Surprisingly not much effort was needed as the baby immediately stopped crying after being scooped up by someone she clearly didn't recognise and stared at the person with the same blue and curious eyes as her brother.

Tsunade shifted her attention from the now silent but very much awake Namiko back towards her sensei, "Who are these two bundles of joy, sensei? Cleary neither of your sons are old enough to have babies, so they probably are not your grandchildren."

The old Hokage having witnessed the whole scene between three blonds answered his student calmly, "No they are not. They are Naruto and Namiko Uzumaki." The Third hoped that his student will be able to connect the dots and if her wide eyes were any indication, she did.

"Y-you d-d-don't mean. T-they are M-Minato and Kushina's..." She stammered out in shock. Just how much time did she spend outside Konoha? She looked at the baby girl she was still holding, which was now trying to take a look at her. Trying being the keyword, as her unnaturally big parts of female anatomy were blocking her view. Those two pair of mounds on her chest were almost bigger than the whole baby girl itself! Sweatdropping at the infant's predicament, she lifted her a little higher to look at the cute face of the baby. And cursed her lack of attention again, as even a shinobi of her calibre, a Sannin, overlooked the cute whisker marks that adorned the baby girl's cheeks. Turning to check on the girl's twin brother, she saw the same whisker marks making them the most adorable and cute babies she had ever seen, even more so than her own brother. _'Even more than him...'_ She thought in sad nostalgia. And disappointment.

"Indeed. But that is not all. Minato used two forbidden Fuuinjustu techniques to seal half of the Kyuubi into each of them, making them both Jinchuurikis of the Kyuubi, just like their mother and your grandmother." Her sensei informed further.

She looked at her sensei wide-eyed before moving that surprised expression on the baby girl in her arms, who was trying to reach her face with her small arms. Dipping her face down, she allowed the little girl to touch her face which made the smaller blonde girl giggle. Though how their own father was able to burden them this much in their first hour out in the living world, was a question that was going through her mind.

"I know what's on your mind but Minato had no choice. It was either the village or his family. As a Hokage, he chose the village first. But Kushina was able to tell me how proud he was of his children at the time." The Third Hokage answered her unasked question.

"So, these two are royalty in the village just like I was, huh," Tsunade said without looking away from the twin blue orbs staring at her.

"No."

That answer caught her off guard again and she turned her attention back to her sensei with confusion etched on her face.

"What do you mean?"

"I do not intend to reveal their parentage to the village." The Third answered his student sadly.

Tsunade just tilted her head, "Why? After having their parents taken from them they certainly deserve it."

"Their parents, especially Minato had enemies. I don't want them to come and try to erase his last remaining essence. The village has suffered great losses and I am afraid I will not be able to keep them safe at this point in time." The Hokage answered frankly.

"As much of a flimsy reason that is, I can understand that." Tsunade agreed. But the Hokage wasn't done, "And I know the villagers will just spoil them if they knew who they were and if they can look past their status of Jinchuuriki."

That made Tsunade uncomfortable. Though she didn't know the exactly of the ideas the villagers had, she knew how most Jinchuurikis were treated by the villagers in different villages. Outcasts will be the kindest word.

"That is why I've called you here Tsunade. I want you to become their caretaker or if possible their mother-figure and raise them with a proper balance in their life." And just like that Hiruzen dropped the bomb on her.

The Slug Sannin just looked at her sensei, mouth agape. Surely he didn't think she'd accept, right?

"Have you gone senile old man? What makes you think I will want to raise two brats? What balance are you talking about? If you don't want them to be spoiled then just don't declare their parentage, I don't care. But what does that have to do with me?" She asked, anger visible on the outside. Inside though, it was fear. Nervousness. It will give two more ways for this village to hurt her.

"It's not only the balance Tsunade. The civilian council has already shown signs of distrust and fear. I have already had quite a few people suggesting to execute them. I am afraid they have already made enemies inside the village. I passed a law to keep their status as Jinchuurikis a secret but I doubt the civilians will abide by it and with me now being the Hokage I cannot take care of both of them, especially without my wife." The Third explained a bit desperately, "They need protection Tsunade but most of all they need the love of a mother to overcome the hatred they are likely to experience from the villagers and the Kyuubi. I am also willing to accept your idea of medical training. Though including one medic in each team will be difficult for the time being but after some time and better training in medical ninjutsu, it should be possible."

Tsunade looked a bit conflicted. Even though she loathed the bitter memories in this village, she also knew that everything her sensei said was true. She could bet that her sensei's old teammate, that old warmonger, would have suggested something along the lines of training the Jinchuurikis as a weapon. Looking at the -surprisingly still quiet- baby she was holding, she couldn't deny that she didn't want anything to happen to them after unknowingly going through everything they have till now. Looking across the room towards its last occupant, she saw another still surprisingly quiet baby boy looking back at her with a questioning gaze. How a day-old boy managed that, even her vast medical knowledge couldn't comprehend, but he just was or she must have imagined it due to her train of thoughts.

She didn't hate the twins. Actually, she found them quite cute. But their appearance caused some past memories to resurface. Memories that brought a deeply buried feeling of guilt and shame back up. It was something she regretted even now. Especially now.

"Bribing me with my own idea won't work, Sarutobi-sensei." She said calmly without making eye contact with him.

"I admit what I'm suggesting can be called bribery. But the offer is sincere and it will help you, the twins and the village as a whole. Seeing as you are the best medic in the world, it is a given that you be the head of the medical training program." The Third suggested trying to get any form of positive response from his student.

"I stopped using medical ninjutsu." The worlds greatest medic argued.

"That didn't stop you from teaching your apprentice." The Hokage shot back without missing a beat.

That surprised Tsunade. She looked at her sensei with the same surprised expression.

"What? How do you think Kitsune was able to find you that fast? He may be an excellent tracker but I've kept eye on you ever since you left, Tsunade. Don't think I don't know what you have been up to till now. I already lost a student in Orochimaru, Jiraiya is needed for his spy network. I was not about to lose my third student. I initially thought you would come back on your own sooner or later, but it seemed I was wrong in my assumption, so I had to keep tabs on you even without your knowledge. Not even Jiraiya knows anything about this. That's why I sent an ANBU instead of letting Jiraiya find you, which would have taken longer." Hiruzen explained.

Tsunade wanted to be angry at being spied on but realised it was her own actions that led to it. She also knew it was not the time to think about how she was not able to sense anyone spying on her. Standing up and moving towards the crib, she set the twin girl down beside her brother and tucked her in, "I have to think about it." Was the only thing she said before she started to leave the office.

"It's your choice Tsunade but please think wisely and quickly as these two aren't safe even now and if there is no answer from you I have to hand them over to the orphanage even if I don't want to." The elderly Hokage told her.

Tsunade just nodded and left the room to visit her old ancestral home after a long time, surprisingly without making a detour to grab some sake.

"I just hope you make the right choice, my student. Both for your and their sake." The Third spoke to no one although some sound did come from the crib.

* * *

Later the same day

There was a knock on Hokage's office door. After a quiet 'Enter' from the Hokage, the door opened to reveal a man with dark spiky hair tied in a ponytail, which made his head look like a pineapple, two scars on the right side of his face and a goatee.

"Ah, Shikaku-san, what can I do for you?", The Hokage asked. _'Though I may have some idea.'_

"Lord Hokage, I have come to put forth some of my observations during the council meeting yesterday." said the now introduced Nara Clan Head and Jounin Commander Shikaku Nara.

"While I know it is too troublesome, I think you actually may have an idea of who their parents are." The clan head borderline accused while pointing at the twins in the crib.

The Hokage narrowed his eyes at the Jounin commander before a subtle smirk formed on his face, "And why would you think that, Shikaku-san?"

"Troublesome. We have done enough missions together for me to know he would not force something like that on some random orphaned twins. And very few parents will be willing to offer their newborn children, especially in those chaotic times. Him being the parent saves him from that. Though I imagine convincing Kushina was probably a lot harder of a job if she was not already dead by that time. And that blond hair and those blue eyes are a dead giveaway of who they truly are, even without the other points." The Nara explained with a lazy tone as if he wasn't interested in the matter at all, even though he was the one who brought it up.

The Hokage was not surprised. While the Nara clan was known to birth tactical geniuses like him, Shikaku was uniquely sharper than the whole clan. Additionally, Shikaku was one of Minato's close friend and knew Minato more personally. He wouldn't be surprised if Shikaku was also aware of Kushina's status as a Jinchuuriki. "Indeed Shikaku-san. You are as sharp as ever. That means you should also know, why I want to keep it a secret."

The Nara clan head nodded, "Though I want to know why you didn't ask for anyone of us to adopt them. As troublesome as it is, I know Yoshino would want to." Shikaku asked his leader.

"Even if I asked something like that, the rest of the council would not allow it to pass, saying that it would give too much power to a single clan." The Hokage explained.

Shikaku just sighed and muttered his signature phrase again.

A second knock interrupted them both and again after an 'Enter' from the Hokage, the door opened to the sight of a tall man with long brown hair and in traditional Japanese robes. But the distinguishing feature on this man would be his purely white eyes.

"Greetings Hokage-sama." Greeted the man with a slight bow.

"Welcome, Hiashi-san. How may I help you? Something tells me you are here for the same purpose as Shikaku-san here." The Hokage asked.

Hiashi Hyuuga raised his head and looked at Shikaku, then at the Hokage and lastly laid his eyes on the sleeping twins.

After closing the door the Hyuuga clan head walked next to his fellow clan head, "Shikaku-san, I presume you are also here to inquire about little Naruto-san and Namiko-san's parentage."

"Indeed", The Nara clan head answered.

"What are your observations Hiashi-san, if I may ask?" The elderly Hokage inquired.

"Looking at their facial features and hair colour, I concluded that they are not just random twins that the Fourth Hokage happened to acquire and seal the Kyuubi in. Also, there wasn't any need to look for twins to seal the Kyuubi in. And the chance of him knowing exactly which family had gotten a set of twins that very day is close to none. There are a lot of holes in the explanation of all things that happened that day, all of which can only be answered with the word: Coincidence. And it would have to be a really big one. And we all know that if coincidences are happening repeatedly, they aren't coincidence anymore." Hiashi elaborated never deviating from the stoic expression that was expected of a Hyuuga.

"Indeed, you are right in your assumptions. Both of you. And I believe you also know the reasons, I have not revealed that particular piece of information and I shall ask you to do the same and keep it a secret from not only others but from the children in question as well if you have any further acquaintance." The Hokage almost ordered the last part.

"I also think you should know that the council will not allow any of the major clans to adopt them because of their status as a Jinchuuriki. But I do ask you to treat them as you will treat any other normal child. I want them to have a childhood like any other child their age should have. Though if you want to tell your wives about this, you can and Shikaku-san, you may inform this to the Akimichi and Yamanaka clan heads too if you want but make sure it doesn't get past them." The Third Hokage explained.

"Hai. Will do, Hokage-sama." Shikaku said.

"If you don't mind Hokage-sama, I want to inquire about their caretaker or their means of upbringing." The Hyuuga patriarch inquired.

"It shall be revealed after the person has accepted the responsibility. If they don't, then I shall look for other means for their upbringing. Do not fear." Hiruzen assured.

"Very well. I shall take my leave then." The Hyuuga head said bowing to his leader and turned to leave.

"I shall leave as well, Hokage-sama." Shikaku mimicked the gesture and followed the Hyuuga clan head.

"With how much you two look like your parents, I don't know how long I will be able to keep this a secret." The Hokage said with a sigh.

Apparently, he didn't know the high level of incompetence the villagers of his own village possessed to look past their fears.

* * *

Uchiha Clan Head Home

Fugaku Uchiha, Clan Head to one of the founding clans of Konoha, The Uchiha Clan, just finished explaining the situation to his wife. He, just like Shikaku and Hiashi, was able to figure out the true identity of the twins. He was also able to realize the reason for hiding the fact. He knew many in his clan would want to adopt, not just the children of Hokage, but the Jinchuurikis of Kyuubi. The fact that there were two of them would be like icing on a cake. But he didn't want that. Minato as a Hokage was an impartial leader. He respected him for that as much as for his fighting prowess. But more importantly, Kushina was a dear friend to his wife. And like any normal man, he was afraid to upset his wife.

The Uchiha clan matriarch wanted nothing more than to adopt the twins. But she knew it would be more dangerous for them. Mikoto Uchiha may be a housewife now, but she was also a proud and strong Kunoichi before she settled down to become a mother. She understood her husband's take on the issue of their adoption. Jinchuurikis were generally treated as weapons of war. She did not wish something like that on her friend's children. She just hoped she got a chance to meet them. They would make very good friends for her little Sasuke.

* * *

OMAKE 2

Fugaku was livid. Actually, he was just jealous. But he was an Uchiha, Uchihas don't get jealous. So instead, he was livid. Livid because a potentially strong weapon slipped from his hands. He didn't know where the Kyuubi came from, but he did know about Jinchuurikis. He knew the tailed beasts could be sealed in human vessels. Such a vessel would have served as a great weapon for the Uchiha. Even if there came no opportunity to use it, it would have been a great show of strength. But he was not good at Fuuinjutsu. No one in Uchiha clan was. Sharingan could copy hand seals as well as the way the chakra was moulded inside the body during a jutsu. But Fuuinjutsu was different, apart from moulding chakra in a particular way inside the body, it also utilised different pattern inked on a paper to do it. The Sharingan couldn't copy that.

But what the Sharingan could do, is see chakra. Maybe not at the same level of Byakugan - though neither Fugaku nor any other Uchiha will ever admit it - it could still see it. And he saw. A huge amount of chakra, abundantly flowing in the air. The residual chakra left after the Kyuubi's appearance a day before. A particular trail of chakra, he saw, was considerably thick and seemed to be originating from somewhere, unlike the fiscal wisps of chakra freely flying around. He followed that trail which led him to a suspiciously familiar-looking reddish-orange thing. He inspected it a little harder, putting some strain on his eyes before he realised what it was. Somehow, during the battle on the previous day, a part of Kyuubi was cut. This was Kyuubi's flesh. A maniacal grin formed on his face. He brought out a sealing scroll and sealed the flesh into it. That was a basic skill taught to everyone and as a Jounin, it was a must to know.

* * *

He watched as red wisps of chakra flowed here and there amongst the regular blue in the chakra coils of his youngest son. Feeding Itachi a part of Kyuubi's flesh was impossible. That child had a perception of a veteran ninja somehow. Putting a part of flesh in Sasuke's milk and letting it absorb the chakra was easier. Sasuke being younger also had more chance of accepting the foreign chakra. It had been two days since he got it. Till now Sasuke had taken at least three doses of chakra bearing milk and there were no signs of damage.

Suddenly Sasuke's eyes flew open but immediately closed after his body started convulsing. He started crying loudly causing his mother to rush towards his crib from the kitchen. She rushed past the shocked form of Fugaku and tried to calm her baby. But as soon as she touched him, she retracted her hand. Her fingers were burnt. Not normal burns but chakra burns. She turned towards her husband only to see him gawking at her son, Sharingan blazing.

Sasuke started to convulse even more while skin started to peel off from his fingertips. His mother watched him, crying helplessly, not being able to touch him. She activated her Sharingan to find the cause of the problem. She found it. Red chakra was trying to come out of his body from every Chakra point. By now both his arms had lost their skin along with his legs. Only his torso and head were still safe.

Fugaku watched as his son was being killed because of the red chakra. He was trying to think of something to save his son, but he wasn't able to come up with anything.

Slowly but surely Sasuke succumbed to the effects of Kyuubi's chakra. After being probed by Mikoto, Fugaku accepted the blame of trying to make Sasuke into a Jinchuuriki. To stop anyone from trying it again, the information was never let out.

* * *

In another part of the village, ANBU and other shinobis along with some civilians were still looking for something to salvage from the rubble of what were houses before the Kyuubi incident. One such ANBU came across something shiny. It was reflecting the sunlight directly onto his eyes. On further inspection, he found it to be a nameplate of a house. Specifically the house he was standing before. The house looked like something had slammed right in the middle of it, somehow leaving the sides almost intact. The nameplate being on the side survived the destruction. Many houses behind this one were met with the same fate. The ANBU realised what had slammed into them. One of Kyuubi's tails. Everything below it was probably squashed. He called some other ANBU to help pick the rubble up. While the nameplate may tell who the house belonged to, it won't tell if the owner or the family in it survived or not.

* * *

A few weeks later Fugaku was found dead right on a newly made grave for Sasuke, killer unknown. At the same time, a document was prepared to show the number of people who died in the Kyuubi incident, Shinobi or otherwise. Turns out the family that the aforementioned house belonged to was indeed dead, squashed to death. The nameplate only said one word. Haruno.

Because of it being in a very small amount, the chakra burnt itself up while coming out of Sasuke. But even that small amount was potent enough to be sensed outside the clan compound. The chakra sensed outside the Uchiha compound raised the villagers' suspicions even more. When the time came to carry out the coup de' tat, Itachi had no reason to spare anyone during his mission to erase his clan, except for Mikoto. Now without a clan, she was able to adopt Naruto and Namiko to continue what she couldn't with Sasuke.

* * *

AN:

That's the third chapter.

This one's omake was really long, I admit. But it served more purposes than just being fun. It cleared some facts about the abilities of Sharingan, which may not have been known to readers who may not have read or watched Naruto. Though the feeding Kyuubi's flesh part did happen in the anime but one was a filler and the other case was...odd. I don't know how Kinkaku or Ginkaku survived. It was said it was because they probably were descendants of Hagoromo. Also, I know the way Sakura died is similar to the first time but I actually didn't add it at first. But since I did say I would we killing Sasuke AND Sakura, I had to think of something. So I added that minor part.

Again the "Minato's Personality was...yada yada" is kind of cliche. But that's how it is. I don't think anyone from the adult generation in Naruto was unaware of who Naruto's parents were. Heck, even Onoki (Third Tsuchikage) and A (Fourth Raikage) knew about it. So I had that scene with the Hokage made up. Naruto's life will be A LOT different in this fic. But I won't tell just now. Just wait and read.

The honorifics I used during Hiruzen's conversation with the clan heads were strictly because it was a formal conversation. I am not going to always use honorifics.

Hope you guys liked it. Till the next one. Tschüss.


	4. The Decision

**CHAPTER UPDATED ON 16/02/2020.**

Hello again. Sorry for the late and single update this week.

I was very busy with my Visa appointment and also didn't have my laptop with me. So writing and editing was very difficult. This chapter is also uploaded from my mobile.

Before starting, let's answer some reviews,

 **Sparta10** : Thank you for your review, I'm happy you find this interesting.

 **OfficerShadowcat** : I'm really sorry if my Omake brought you any discomfort. I'll try to keep baby violence less. But do remember that they became ninjas at the age of 12 when they can be considered children. And they are supposed to kill at that age. The new Boruto maybe a lot mellowed in those terms. But while I cannot exactly understand your pain since I'm a guy, I try to.

And for that, I'm pausing the Omakes. They will be resumed after Naruto and his generation grow up. Which is 1 chapter far anyway. (Though I know it sound wrong but the fact that you could feel what I write is a great appreciation for me)

Again, this chapter is inspired by one of the starting chapters of Psycho G's Neo Yondaime Hokage.

"Speaking"

"YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 _ **'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'**_

Disclaimer: **I do not own the Naruto franchise.**

* * *

Chapter 4: The Decision

Senju Household

Tsunade was on the bed in her room in her old family home mulling over her sensei's words. The house still brought old memories of her brother, grandfather and all her lost family. She had lost all of them in addition to lover Dan Kato to their service to this village. And now two more people were added to the list. She wanted to run away from all this, to stay away from all the pain even though she knew it was impossible. The offer of having a good medical-nin unit was very tempting but that was not what she was not thinking about anymore.

It was about the twins. She had a slight inkling of how their life would be if she refused and they are sent to the orphanage. They will be hated for what they carry. Scorned for what they didn't do. But she couldn't raise these children. Sure she dreamt of being with Dan and having children of their own. But that dream died with him. Jiraiya should be the one raising them. Though she also didn't want him anywhere near them. She knew why the old man didn't give the job to the Toad Hermit. He just wasn't cut out for it.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the door sliding open. She raised her head to look at the new arrival. A young girl of around 15 entered the room holding a tray with a steaming cup of tea. She had straight black hair and similarly coloured eyes.

On seeing the young girl her mind started another line of thinking. The girl was Shizune, Dan's niece. She had taken her under her wing before leaving the village and as the old man said, started imparting knowledge of medical ninjutsu to her. Like the house, looking at the young girl also used to stir the past bitter memories of her uncle, but she got over it. She was the last of which remained of her beloved Dan.

Her thinking was again interrupted by the same girl calling her name.

"Lady Tsunade? Are you alright?" asked the medic apprentice apparently the third time.

"Yes. Yes, I'm alright Shizune." Tsunade answered taking the cup of tea from the tray.

"So what was it that Lord Third wanted to talk about?" Shizune asked while setting the tray on the bedside table.

The only answer she got was some muttering from the elder blonde.

"Huh?"

"He wanted me to adopt some children. A set of twins." Tsunade answered louder this time.

"The Hokage wouldn't call for you so urgently only for that. Adoption of some random twins"

"You are right, they are not some random twins." the Sannin supplied.

Shizune waited for some further explanation but when she didn't get any she pressed, "So who are they?"

Tsunade knowing it was unavoidable answered with a sigh, "They are the Jinchuurikis of the Kyuubi."

Now even though Shizune was young, she knew what a Jinchuuriki was. But she also noticed the abnormality of the statement so she asked for clarification, "THEY are the Jinchuurikis of the Kyuubi? As in, they both are vessels of the same Tailed Beast? How is that possible?"

"The fourth used a jutsu to divide the tailed beast's chakra and sealed them inside each baby." The buxom blonde explained monotonously still caught in her thoughts.

"Okay, so they are Jinchuurikis. But why does he want you to adopt them? Why not someone else?" while she knew what a Jinchuuriki was, Shizune didn't exactly have any idea on how they were treated.

Tsunade finally looked at her apprentice and answered, "Jinchuurikis are never treated well in a village. In fact, they are hated for what they carry. They are seen as the monster itself. Many Jinchuuriki tend to go missing just because of that fact, or they become unstable and release the tailed beast. They are sometimes not even considered as humans giving literal meaning to the word human sacrifice. Sensei doesn't want that to happen to them. Also its not the only reason he is asking me to do this."

Shizune looked sad after hearing about the treatment or mistreatment of Jinchuurikis. She understood why anyone would become unstable. Lack of love or caring. Not being counted as a human while living among them would affect anyone's mentality. She didn't miss the last part though.

"So what is the other reason then?" Shizune asked expectedly.

With another sigh, Tsunade answered, "They are the children of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki."

Shizune's eyes went wide. _'So the Fourth Hokage sealed the Kyuubi into his own children.'_ She had heard about the Fourth Hokage and his wife's death through whispers in the village but this was news to her. She now knew how important the twins were. Just like her master, they were royalty to the village, being the children of Hokage. But if that was the case, why would the village mistreat them?

"Sensei doesn't plan on revealing their heritage. For their own safety from their father's enemies." Tsunade answered her apprentice's unasked question.

Silence fell upon them for a while. None of them spoke anything, still in their own thoughts. After sometime Tsunade continued, "He also offered me the position of Head of the Medical facility of the Village and agreed to assign at least one medic ninja in a Four-Man Cell."

Shizune brightened upon that revelation. She knew it was one of her master's wishes after her brother died. But was denied due to lack of manpower during the war.

Again the room became silent. This time it was broken by the younger Kunoichi, "So are you going to take the offer?" she asked again expectedly. She wanted her master to stop running away. Her uncle's death hit her hard too, but she was a Kunoichi, death even to those close to her was a part of her life. She was tired of constantly running while taking care of her master's obsession for gambling and the streak of bad luck. Not to mention running from the debtors and dragging her back to the inns after she got completely stumped on sake was an everyday chore to her now. Truthfully she wanted it to stop and settle in her home again. But the answer she got although expected but was not what she wanted.

"No," Tsunade answered in a single word bringing Shizune's dream of at last settling in the village crashing down. While she was downtrodden, she still asked quite calmly, "Why?"

"Why? I want nothing to do with this village anymore. It has done nothing but taken my loved ones away from me. I owe this village nothing neither do I owe anything to either Minato or Kushina. Truthfully, why should I care what happens to this village or those brats?" Tsunade ranted.

During her rant, Shizune was getting progressively angrier at her sensei. She would leave two innocent children to fend for themselves in a place where they will most definitely be hated because she didn't owe anything to them? Clearly, Tsunade's attitude towards gambling was also affecting her thought process. While Shizune was thinking this, Tsunade was still ranting about how she would just live a happy life outside the village, drink sake and gamble.

"Shut up," Shizune said in a quiet voice hiding all the anger she held towards her sensei's words.

"Hmm, what did you say Shizune?" Tsunade asked breaking from her rant.

"I said SHUT UP. You mean, you will just leave two innocent children to bear all the village's hatred themselves just because you don't owe anything to them or their parents? Just because this village reminds you of your brother or my uncle. Just how long are you going to run Lady Tsunade? You can't always run from everything. Even I know you are not the only one who lost a loved one to this village. I lost my uncle too. I know I agreed to accompany you on your journey. But I thought you would come back someday." Shizune yelled at her master angrily, tears pouring down her cheeks but still continued, "If you don't want to do it, then fine. Go. Run all you want. I'm staying here to look after them. I may not be much strong or old enough but I'll manage."

Tsunade was shocked. Her own apprentice was practically calling her a coward and leaving her to take care of two brats and save them from this ungrateful village. Anger filled her being towards her apprentice but before she could lash out on her, Shizune was already closing the door to her bedroom, leaving her alone to think about what her apprentice said. After cooling down from her anger of course.

* * *

Somewhere in an unknown location

Inside a dark room stood two figures, both concealed by cloaks. One figure was holding something that resembled a briefcase. It handed the briefcase to the other and spoke, "You know what to do. I want either one or preferably both the demons out of the village. After that, you can do whatever you wish with them but I suggest you kill them. I don't want either of them coming back."

"It will be done. But are they really all that important or dangerous that you are willing to pay this much just to get rid of two small brats?" The second figure asked.

"Don't be fooled by them. They have already taken control of the old fool of a Hokage, making him believe they are human. They are just demons." Answered the first figure with clear disgust in his voice. "Just make sure it doesn't come back to me."

"You dare question my abilities, Civilian. Don't think for even a second that you know anything about being a shinobi." The second figure stated angrily.

If the now known civilian was scared then he hid it well and just scoffed before starting to leave the place but not before saying, "Soon I will rid the village of these demons."

The second figure just shook his head and vanished.

* * *

Hokage's Office

It was late at night. The Third Hokage was walking towards his office to check up on his two young charges. Giving a nod to the two guards beside the door, he stuck in a key and quietly went inside his office.

He directly went towards the crib holding the twins and gazed upon the sleeping infants and smiled.

But it wasn't the grandfatherly smile he would normally give. Suddenly the Hokage was enveloped in a cloud of smoke and the figure inside it changed from the elderly kage to a young man with brown hair and brown eyes. He wore a standard jounin uniform with his forehead protector on his forehead. But the difference between his dressing and a normal Konoha jounin was obvious. It was not a Konoha jounin uniform nor the insignia on his slashed headband was of Konoha. It was of an enemy village.

It was of Iwagakure no Sato. The Village Hidden in Rocks.

* * *

Sometime later in the Hokage's office

Sarutobi Hiruzen was once again seen walking towards his office. The reinstated Hokage knew that the news of two new Jinchuuriki had somehow already started spreading but he couldn't do anything about it. They never outright came out and talked about it. They conveyed it by calling them demon or demon spawns. He just sighed at the stupidity of the villagers. Thus the reason for two guards outside his office where the last remnants of his successor laid sleeping. He walked up to the guards signalling them of his arrival but was immediately alarmed by their reaction. Instead of the normal small nod, they had shock written all over their faces.

"L-lord Third? B-but how?" One of the guards stammered out his question.

"What is the meaning of this?" the God of Shinobi asked with undeniable authority.

"W-we just saw you go inside the o-office awhile ago. But we didn't see you leave." answered the second guard.

With a shout of "WHAT" the old Hokage blasted through the door inside his office to see it completely empty. Completely. That meant even the twins were missing from their crib.

The Hokage looked at the crib, shaking with rage. _'Not even a full day old and kidnapped. You have to agree, Tsunade or they might not survive much longer.'_

"Call every Shinobi above Genin rank. Seal the village gates. I want every shinobi searching for both of them. Do it now." The Hokage ordered getting a collective 'Hai' from the guards before they vanished.

 _'Jiraiya you better still be in the village. Or your godchildren will be in grave danger if they already aren't that is.'_

* * *

Senju Household

Tsunade for the third time was pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of shinobis outside. Looking out of the window she saw ninjas of all ranks running around, searching for something. Hopping out through her window on the roof she signalled an ANBU, who after seeing who she was, stopped and bowed to her.

"What is all this commotion?" the Sannin asked the bowing ANBU.

"Lady Tsunade, there has been a kidnapping from the Hokage's office. Young Naruto and Namiko both are missing from their place. Lord Third has called for a village-wide search for every shinobi above Genin rank." The ANBU answered.

Tsunade eyes went wide. She knew those two were in danger but to be kidnapped by who knows who on their second day of life. Her shock changed into worry and she leapt from the roof beginning her own search, leaving a shocked ANBU, who after a while came out of his trance and resumed his search.

Tsunade was racking her brain for any location the kidnapper might have taken them to. But as much as she tried, without any information on his motives or his identity, it was almost impossible.

The civilians and workers working on rebuilding were confused by this much shinobi activity. Even the shinobis were confused. They were ordered to locate two blond-haired babies with an unknown kidnapper. In this big village, it was like looking for a needle in a haystack. That was not counting the headstart the kidnapper had.

Tsunade stopped on the roof of one of the intact buildings close to the portion of the wall destroyed during Kyuubi's attack. She saw the fox masked ninja who was asked to retrieve her, pass through the hole in the wall out of the village with something akin to a rucksack on his back.

She knew that ninja. And she saw him close to the Hokage tower just a few moments ago. And the fact that he didn't have anything with him at that time proved that the ninja who just left the village was an imposter.

She leapt off behind him to give a chase. He was not so far ahead, she could still see his white hair. But whoever this was, he was fast as Tsunade was not able to close the distance.

After some time in the chase, the imposter stopped in the middle of clearing followed by Tsunade but didn't turn around.

"Who are you? You are not ANBU. They were not ordered to wander this far from the village. Show yourself." Tsunade demanded.

The chuckling that followed surprised her. Then in a puff of smoke, his appearance changed to that of an Iwa shinobi from an ANBU operative.

"Impressive, Tsunade of the Sannin. I thought taking these brats from the Hokage's office would be harder. But it was quite easier than I thought. You people really are weakened from Kyuubi's attack. Though I never thought I would be caught while escaping." said the now revealed Iwa Shinobi.

During the whole conversation, Tsunade's mind was in full gear. _'How did Iwa know about the twins so fast? Scratch that how the hell did they know about them at all? Does he know about their heritage?'_ Keeping a calm face Tsunade asked, "Why did you kidnap them? What do you want with them?"

"You would want to know, wouldn't you? But guess what I'm not telling you. It would be against my code." the kidnapper answered, back still towards the blonde. He was no fool. He knew he had no chance of defeating one of the Sannin. But he also knew she wouldn't attack the kids.

"Hand them over. Or I'll take them from you." Tsunade demanded. But she knew he wouldn't do that. She also knew that she could not attack him while he had his back towards her or she could hurt the babies.

"You are in no position to demand anything, Sannin." The kidnapper answered while turning to his left to show the explosive tag on the side of his rucksack, "If you move from there I'll blow them to bits. I could have sold them to other villages to be used as weapons but my employer wanted them dead. Even If I can't sell them I can still finish my contract." The kidnapper admitted smugly.

 _'So he knows they are Jinchuurikis. And he is hired. It must have been someone from inside the village. The news can't possibly travel so fast. Damn the old man was right. They've already made enemies inside the village.'_

She had to do something or else. Her thoughts were interrupted by the kidnapper's next words.

"Besides my village will reward me and welcome me back if I tell them that I killed the Yellow Flash's offsprings."

Tsunade was filled with dread now. This foreign ninja knew. And not any foreign ninja, an Iwa ninja. But she kept a bit of hope knowing that this kidnapper gave himself away as a missing-nin. That meant the village didn't know, and the information was limited to this lone shinobi. She thought of playing dumb for now so as not to give away any more information. She needed to know how he knew.

"What are you talking about?" she asked calmly.

"Oh come on. Don't give me that. Their appearance is a dead giveaway. Otherwise, why would you keep them in such a secure place? But eavesdropping on you did help a bit." confessed the Iwa ninja smugly.

Tsunade cursed herself for giving up such a piece of vital information, although unknowingly. She had to remedy that.

She saw that the arrogant kidnapper had now fully turned towards her and was looking at her with a smug look on his face. She smirked in her mind. She channelled chakra to her legs for a speed boost as she had only one chance to do this. She leapt forward in a burst of speed towards the kidnapper who was caught off guard by this sudden action and was swept off his feet by a low sweep from Tsunade. Before he could fall to the ground she tore off the rucksack from his shoulder and leapt away putting some distance between them.

She was about to breathe a sigh of relief but a hissing sound got her attention to the side of the bag where the exploding tag was about to go off. She tore off the tag and tried to throw it away but it being simple paper followed the laws of physics and didn't go much far. So in a desperate attempt to save the twins, she held the bag close and turned her back towards the tag just before it went off. Due to the close proximity of the tag the explosion sent her straight towards a tree. She was able to again turn herself just as she was about the hit the tree, hence able to save the twins from getting squashed.

During the exchange, the kidnapper was able to get into a crouching position to look at the Sannin but had to close his eyes to shield them from the light coming from the explosion.

Tsunade took the full brunt of the explosion and was about to pass out after hitting the tree but kept awake through sheer will. She saw the kidnapper stand up and start walking towards her through her blurry eyes. She wanted to stay awake but allowed herself to lose consciousness after seeing the kidnapper being knocked unconscious by someone, she couldn't recognise because of her dizziness but his voice was all too familiar to her.

"I see you made your decision Hime."

* * *

AN:

As I said no Omake for this and one more chapter. Killing baby Sasuke was getting boring anyway. It will better when he says something foolish and then die.

Also, the fight scene was short just like the one on the 1st chapter. I know. I think that the only one on one fight that lasted very long in cannon was Naruto vs Pain. Which was long because of the Talk-no-Jutsu shounen anime are famous for. That will not be the case here. Not always. There are some places where they are necessary. Otherwise, I will not bother with them. Obviously, traps and strategies will be explained. But in some other way. No one will stop the fight just to explain their strategy unless needed.

Hime - Princess

Okay. Tell me how it was. Till the next one.


	5. Uzumaki, Senju or Kato? Or?

**CHAPTER UPDATED ON 16/02/2020.**

Hello again. I'm back with another chapter. Thank you for your reviews and follows.

From here on out, **Any similarities to any other fic is purely coincidental.** You know, as they say in the movies.

Time to answer some reviews,

 **mrsancog** : Thanks. Just wait and ...read, I guess.

 **TheWateringWizard** : I'm glad you like my story. Yes, Its purely NaruHina, along with other cannon pairings like ShikaTema, SaiIno, ChoKarui (Though I still don't know how it came about in the manga, I will add my own ideas to it), SasuSaku (Yes, while I kill them in Omakes, they will stay alive enough to be paired) along with *Surprise*Nami.

I do have some idea of a NaruHinaHarem fic. I don't think if I will ever have enough time for it. Some I'll leave some of my ideas for others to adopt. Now on with the chapter.

"Speaking"

"YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

This really is annoying, **Naruto franchise is not owned by me.** I would be super rich if I did though.

* * *

Chapter 5: Uzumaki, Senju or Kato? Or?

Konoha Hospital

A white ceiling was all she could make out with the blurry image she saw when she opened her eyes. After getting a few more senses back, she got the very familiar smell of sanitizers and could feel something wrapped around her head. Only then did she realize that she was in the hospital. She then recalled what may have happened to her to get her there and stumbled upon the memories of fighting someone while carrying something and an explosion and at last someone's voice before she blacked out. Then the complete event flew back to her and she immediately tried to sit up which caused her slight discomfort.

Her actions alerted two of the occupants of the room, who diverted their attention to the now awake Tsunade.

Seeing her awake her old teammate said, "It's not often for you to come to the hospital as a patient. Maybe I should play doctor with you?" The lecherous face he made, made her want to punch him out of there but it seemed her body denied her that privilege. So she did the next best thing she could do. She humphed.

Already familiar with his student's perverted antics, the old reinstated Hokage cleared his throat to get his other student's attention. Seeing that it worked he started the needed conversation with, "I'm glad you're awake Tsunade. Shizune was really worried."

Tsunade turned her eyes to her Sensei and asked, "How are they?"

The question would have been vague to any random person, the Professor, however, understood who this 'they' were and answered, frowning a little, "I was worried since they seemed to be sleeping even after that explosion and had Shizune check them. But they are perfectly fine. For some reason, they have been sleeping a lot." He smiled as he reached the end and said, "You did a good job finding and protecting them." He then pointed towards the crib beside him which Tsunade probably missed because of her lingering sleep.

Tsunade's expression softened on seeing the crib. Hiruzen hardened his expression to ask the question whose answer he was anxiously waiting for.

"Tsunade, I know it's too soon but still I've to ask yo-"

"I accept. I will take care of them." Tsunade cut in between to answer the unfinished question.

The Third Hokage smiled at her answer, "Thank you Tsunade. I and probably Minato and Kushina both are very grateful to you for this. With you, I think they will have a better life than what they would have had, if..." He trailed off.

"No problem. After Nawaki and Dan, I guess this will be another shot at life. I'd like to live the life of a mother. I'm thinking of taking the Senju name and adopting them." Tsunade said with the smile never leaving her face.

But Hiruzen had a troubled expression, "I'm sorry Tsunade but that cannot be done."

Tsunade gave him a confused look, "What do you mean?"

"Giving them the Senju name may not only rile up other villages but it will also stir up internal conflict inside the village. Also, it will post another target on them increasing the chances of repetition of yesterday's events.", The Third explained.

Now Tsunade was angry, "I can understand the thing about other villages and the target but what is it with this internal conflict? I thought people would be happy with Senju clan's return."

Even to her angry argument, Hiruzen replied quite calmly, "I fear that the news of them being Jinchuurikis have already spread through the village along with their looks. If they were to be suddenly announced as heirs to the Senju, many will have doubts and the council already know that they are not your children and are completely against their adoption. Though the council is something for me to handle. The Uchihas may also feel threatened with their old rival clan being reinstated."

Tsunade ground her teeth on that last point, _'Sometimes I agree with Granduncle Tobirama'._

Ignoring the aura of rage flowing out of his student Hiruzen continued, "But you can adopt them nonetheless. We can either keep their last name a secret, which will be second time now, or you may adopt the name of Uzumaki. While the latter is not practical since everyone knows who you are, we can still use it by saying that you married an Uzumaki."

Tsunade wore a very complicated expression at that. The latter option was not something she was comfortable with and she didn't want to take their identity away from them.

During this silence the third person, feeling left alone, gave his opinion, "Even I don't have a surname that I could give." He topped it off with a complicated expression but the meaning behind his statement didn't go unnoticed by both of his companions.

Tsunade twitched her eyebrows and finally snapped at him, "Can't you get serious for once? If you don't have any good ideas then get going. Don't you have bathhouses to peep in?"

Her yelling proved a bit counter-productive since it, at last, woke up the last two occupants of the room who immediately started crying. At the exact same time, another person barged into the room after hearing her master yell.

"Lady Tsunade! You are awake. I'm so glad." Shizune exclaimed in tears. Of all the times during her travels with her master, this was the first time she had to treat her and not the other way around.

After getting over her joy from seeing her master awake, she turned her attention on the crying twins, who surprisingly stopped crying on her sudden entry and were looking at her.

Noticing the lack of noise Tsunade also turned her eyes on the twins and changed her annoyed expression to a softer one.

"It seems the ones in question are also ready to join the conversation." Hiruzen said while lifting Namiko up which caused her to start crying again, "or not" added the Hokage with a sweatdrop.

Shizune took Namiko from the Hokage who stopped crying in an instant. The Hokage in a moment of childishness started sulking in the corner of the room while murmuring something along the lines of 'I'm sorry Minato' and 'Kushina hates me'.

The other three adult occupants of the room sweatdropped at that. Tsunade snapped backed from the scene first and asked Shizune to hand Namiko over. Taking the baby girl in her arms, she looked at her lovingly while Shizune took the elder brother from his crib and asked what they were discussing about. After being filled in on all the details, Shizune innocently replied.

"Why not make it 'Kato'?"

The answer caught the two Sannins and the now recovered Hokage off guard. They all wore blank expressions for some time making Shizune think she may have said something wrong. Tsunade frowning after some time did not help her either. But the one who answered was the Hokage, "While it is a plausible solution, everybody knows Tsunade never married Dan and was in the village for more than a year after his death. The situation will then turn inexplicable."

Tsunade made a determined expression, "I'm going with the Senju name and if you do not approve of it, I'm leaving this village with them. The council has no say in this and since they will know that I adopted them and the Senju is all but extinct, the Uchiha's should also not have any problems."

Jiraiya now again in the conversation added, "And I can handle the other villages. It really isn't a big deal. I mean, yeah we got new Senjus in the village, other villages may try to attack but knowing that their mother is Tsunade they will hesitate from trying anything right away." Turning his gaze outside the window he was leaning on, he continued, "Also I think its time for me to stop my useless chase and start doing something important for someone." Everyone understood what he was talking about.

The Hokage after a bit of thinking relented, "Alright so be it. If that is your wish, I do not want to deny it. But I think we should discuss some other matters now that the most important one is resolved."

That confused all but Jiraiya. Shizune was the one to put her state of confusion in words, "What do you mean Hokage-sama?"

The Hokage answered, "We cannot keep this all a secret from the twins for their whole life. They need to be told about everything. The question is when?"

That troubled Tsunade. She was already attached to the twins and she didn't know how much the truth would hurt them and her after a long time has passed. She tried to argue but Jiraiya stopped her by consenting to the Hokage's statement.

"Tsunade, it cannot be hidden from them for long. Specifically the Nine-Tails. I know for sure that they will encounter its power at some point in their life. They may also ask you about their father. We can stall it for some time but it won't last long. And I also want them to know who and what their parents were. It's their right, don't you think?"

All the argument Tsunade had in her stopped at that. He was right. She knew. It wouldn't be right to hide it from them. She wasn't that worried about the Nine-Tails part. But after being their mother for who knows how long, to tell them it was not true would be harsh, not only for them but also for her. But she couldn't deny it. She reluctantly nodded.

Even Shizune was thinking hard about it but knew it has to be done. So she didn't say anything.

The Hokage, after getting the nod, continued, "I think it would be better to tell them about the Nine-Tails after they become Genins that is if you want them to be ninjas, Tsunade?"

That was also a question, will they become ninjas? If their family background was to be taken into account, along with having a Tailed Beast sealed into them, it would be a waste of talent to not make them into ninjas. But on the other hand, not being a ninja will also keep them relatively safer. Tsunade knew that. If they do not become ninjas, the chance of losing them will be reduced. But what if they grew up wanting to be ninjas? Will she deny them or allow them? Frankly, even though she lost many loved ones on the battlefield, she wanted her children to be like her. She wanted them to grow strong. Stronger than their biological parents. Stronger than her. That way, they can protect themselves and their loved ones better.

"I think I would leave it to them to decide." She said calmly while looking at one of the infants in question in her arms and then at the other in her student's. It was still a mystery how these three days old babies were still quiet and awake in this situation. But even if they were quiet there seemed to be energy coming off from them and for some reason, both were staring right at her. It was probably because she was the one who spoke the last. That meant that even though they didn't understand anything they were still paying attention.

Jiraiya noticed this behaviour too. He said, "They have quite the attentiveness. We should probably start preparing their training schedule, Hime. I think they would definitely want to be a ninja. Just like their parents. All three of them."

The last line brought tears to her eyes. She knew that was still to be official but to be called a mother meant a lot to her.

Hiruzen, after witnessing the moment, said, "So it's decided. They would be told about the Nine-Tails after they become Geni-"

He was interrupted by Tsunade, "Let me decide that Sensei. There is no rush in deciding something like that. I will tell them when I think they are mature enough to understand."

The Hokage wanted to argue but knew he couldn't sway his student. She looked resolute in her decision. "Very well. I leave it to their mother." He said getting another smile from his student. He continued, "Also I'm willing to keep the matter of their adoption a secret from the inhabitants of this village and the twins, till they are told the truth, hence making Tsunade their biological mother till then. But I don't think they will change their feelings towards you even after they are told the truth, Tsunade." The Hokage assured the legendary medic.

Afterwards, they decided to call the council after Tsunade rested a bit more because she and also Jiraiya wanted to be present in the council room for this. They knew it would be anything but peaceful.

* * *

Meeting Room

The council of advisors along with the clan heads and civilians who were called in the previous meeting had gathered with the addition of the Hokage, Tsunade, Jiraiya and the Uzumaki turned Senju twins, one with each of the Sannin, in the meeting room. The Hokage had already informed them about the specifics on the new adoption, the restart of Senju Clan and the new law.

Needless to say, the council was in an uproar, both in favours and denials. Unsurprisingly the Hyuuga, Nara, Yamanaka, Akimichi, and Inuzuka were in favour. The Uchiha, Kurama, the advisors and the one-eyed war hawk did not give much reaction to it. Shibi Aburame didn't say anything aside from a nod which probably counted as being in favour. The civilians were the main ones making the commotion. It was quite clear where the majority was. Not that the Hokage or the Sannin cared.

"But those things can let out the beast and wipe out the whole village. Even one of them if dangerous. They should be kill-"

One of the civilians' argument was cut short by the sound of something breaking. Tsunade had punched the wall lightly –for her- causing cracks to appear on the wall.

"Call them 'thing' one more time and it will be your skull next time. They are humans and MY children. I won't take any insults towards them lightly." Tsunade stated angrily.

"As you can see, the mother in question is quite agitated by your unreasonable arguments and insults, so please refrain from such comments. And again I request the respected civilians to not comment on matters they do not understand. You are called here today only because I promised to inform everyone about the twins' caretaker in the previous meeting." Hiruzen stated to the shut civilians up. He now really regretted calling them in the first meeting.

The ROOT leader, breaking his silence, pitched in trying to get the twins under him, "Even so, giving the Jinchuurikis to a single clan will tip the power balance within the clans too much, Hiruzen. You should instead give them to me to train them. I will guarantee their protection too." He said.

"Oh their training and protection are already taken care of, don't worry. I think a seal master, the one who taught the Fourth Hokage, and a legendary Medic are enough for that," answered Jiraiya challenging the ROOT leader.

"Doesn't matter, I'm not going to hand them over to you, Danzo. I don't want them to turn into puppets." Tsunade said.

"You're thinkin-" Danzo tried to argue but was cut off by, "Enough! I've already told you they are not to be trained by your method, Danzo. What you want is not going to happen." The Hokage stated, making his stance clear. Then he continued, "And as for the power balance between the clans. The Senju clan right now has a total of three members, two of them being infants at the moment. For all the strength Tsunade has you can't compare her to a whole clan. Do you mean to say a clan with a single ninja and two infants are more powerful than other clans in the village?"

He turned his attention to the front, "I hereby acknowledge Naruto and Namiko Uzumaki as Naruto and Namiko Senju, children of Tsunade Senju, hence restarting the Senju Clan with Naruto Senju as the heir. And the truth of them being adopted is an S-class secret which is not to be disclosed to anyone besides who already know. Among them, Shizune Kato is the only one outside the occupants of this room who knows. Even not to the children unless given permission by their mother. Obviously it is punishable to death should someone violate the rule."

He then turned to Tsunade, "I hereby declare Tsunade Senju as the Head of the Senju Clan. I ask you to please retake the seat."

Tsunade bowed to her Sensei, "I accept".

Everybody was ready to leave the room but the Hokage stopped them, "Now onto some other matter. You may have had noticed a sudden increase in Shinobi activity yesterday evening. I will now state the reason for it." Everybody except the Hokage and the Sannin became curious. They did notice a sudden rush that came about in the Shinobi yesterday evening like they were searching for something. Many of them thought it had something to do with the Kyuubi incident. But one among them went stiff. He had been doing this since the moment he saw the babies in the Sannin's hands. After the Hokage's declaration though he started sweating, fidgeting in his seat. This behaviour did not go unnoticed by all the veteran ninjas in the room. But they kept quiet so that they could resolve the more important matter at hand.

The Hokage, after letting the curiosity rise for a while, continued, "Yesterday, someone was not only able to infiltrate the village but was also successful in gaining access to my office and kidnap the twins from there."

The sound of gasps that followed along with the barrage of questions did not surprise the Hokage and his students. Though it did surprise the babies, who instantly woke up and started crying. That, in turn, stopped the questions from the council members and grabbed their attention. The Hokage believing there was no need to keep the twins in the meeting room anymore, told Tsunade and Jiraiya to leave with them. Instead, Jiraiya just handed Naruto over to the fox masked ANBU that was stationed in the room and told him to accompany Tsunade to the Senju compound. He wanted to stay and attend the proceedings further, though what he actually wanted was the reason behind such acts against his Godchildren, he wanted to know personally. The ANBU looked at the Hokage, who just nodded, and followed Tsunade out of the meeting room towards the soon to be repopulated Senju compound.

As the door to the room closed, the sound of crying stopped as well. But the room remained silent instead of erupting into commotion again. After some time it was, surprisingly, Shikaku who asked the obvious question, "Who was it, Hokage-sama? Since the twins are fine, that means someone was able to catch and apprehend them. Who did it? Did we get any information out of them?"

"Indeed. Tsunade herself was the one who chased and fought him. Though the one to apprehend him, fortunately alive, was Jiraiya. He was immediately handed over to the T&I department for interrogation. Ibiki was able to not only get his identity out of him and how he did it but also the identity of who hired him." The Third answered him looking at one of the civilians, who was sweating bullets now. Everyone there caught his gaze but waited for their Hokage's word before jumping to conclusions.

"He was a Chuunin from Iwagakure. A missing-nin. Although Chuunin, his bingo book entry shows him to be a very good spy and saboteur. But it was not his skills that proved vital in his infiltration of our village. One of our own betrayed us and gave him exact information about the damages suffered by our village, with which he was able to bypass the shinobis and civilians working on rebuilding and reach the Hokage tower. He disguised himself as me using a transformation different from the regular Transformation Jutsu (Henge no Jutsu) to gain access to my office using a key he was provided by the traitor and left with the twins via a window." The Hokage explained. "He is already bagged to be deported to Iwa. But it is more important to plug the holes in our security, including silencing the traitor in our midst." Every ninja among them caught the implication of his words. He was killed and stored in a body bag to take him to one of the bounty offices to collect any bounty on his head.

The traitor, in an attempt to save himself, tried to run towards the door. Tried. As soon as he got up to do so, he was caught by two other ANBU's in the room. Held with his hands behind his back, he was forced to face the council.

"Minashigo Kaido, Head of child care association. You saved me some effort in revealing yourself. Before I pass any judgment on you, I will listen to what you have to say. Do tell me why I should not just execute you now and instead just send you to the prison?" The Hokage asked.

Kaido sneered at the Hokage, "Is this all you Shinobis are? You were supposed to be a powerful bunch of people, but instead, all of you got tricked by a pair of demons. I knew no one would adopt them and in the end, will land in one of my orphanages. I couldn't let them spread their filth there. They would corrupt the children there, brainwash them and use them to destroy this village. Since no one was brave enough to do something, it fell on me to remove the stain from our village. So I hired him to take those two and kill them. I knew I shouldn't have trusted him. He was just as weak as you all are. Though I never would've thought the world's greatest medic would also be tricked by those demons. It shows how you ninjas are nothing but liars."

His accusations were not liked by his targets. Not one bit. And those who knew the real identities of the twins were even more enraged by him repeatedly calling them demons, including the Hokage. The civilians were kind of agreeing with him. But they did not outright show it. They knew doing so would group them with him and get them punished as well.

The Hokage looked at him without showing any of his anger on his face, "You did not use your chance of plea wisely, Kaido-san. Because of you, our village's security was breached along with the one of my office. We could have lost not only many of our village's secrets but he could have used that opportunity to further weaken our village. Not counting the fact that you hired him to kidnap two CHILDREN, who are Jinchuurikis of Kyuubi. Jinchuurikis are very important to villages military. Absence of which may cause other villages to attack us. We have just started our recovery from a huge attack, another attack would not only cause us to lose the status of a Great Ninja Village, but we would also probably lose the village itself." He did not like to refer the twins as such, but it was a matter of fact and it was necessary to drive the importance of having a Jinchuuriki in their heads.

Kaido just scoffed, but the Hokage wasn't finished, "If Tsunade was here, I wouldn't have enough time to pass judgment on you." He commented.

The old Hokage took on a serious face and ordered the ANBU, "Take him to Ibiki. I want to know how he got the keys to my office." The ANBU nodded and took him out of the meeting chambers to the T&I department. The smug civilian would probably have told him if he asked, but he wanted to drill the severity of the crime he committed into not only him but others as well.

After the door closed, the Third turned to address the rest, "He will be interrogated and executed for treason. Let this be an example for whoever wishes to harm Naruto and Namiko Senju in the future _'Not that you can anymore'_ and disobey my orders. As I have said before, the laws I have made are punishable to death and I WILL follow through them." He announced giving heavy emphasis on 'will'. He was glad to see the shaky nods the civilian gave along with the normal ones the others gave.

"Dismissed." Was the last thing said in that room by the Hokage after which he left towards the Senju household with Jiraiya, leaving others to contemplate on everything that happened there. Suffice to say none of them had any immediate plans of dying.

* * *

AN:

Aaaand Cut! That's the fifth chapter. Just like I said in the previous chapter, no Omake in this one. Omakes will resume from the next chapter, which you have probably guessed is where they grow up.

Now for some rant. I do not like the fics which give heavy emphasis on portraying how exactly one's training went. Of course, a glimpse here and there is okay. Sometimes authors just write training regimes again and again, whenever there is a slight change. I find it unnecessary. I will show their skills. Explain how they got them. Some training in the flashbacks. And only the important ones will be completely written. No hate to fics that do that. I know obviously because I've read them. As long the story flows alongside its okay. But that's just my preference.

Okay. Till the next Chapter. Sayonara.


	6. My Academy Class

Thank you again for your reviews and follow ups.

At last, we are at the chapter where Naruto and Namiko make their own debut. Yes it is a Time Skip. But don't worry, important events before this chapter will be shown using the famous S-Rank Jutsu known only by authors, Flashback no Jutsu.

Now to answer some reviews,

 **TheWateringWizard:** Thank you for following my fic till now. Yes, Danzo is despicable and many of the events in the Naruto verse could have been avoided without him like Turning of Akatsuki (Yahiko's death) etc. But he also did it to protect Konoha. He did wrong but meant right, I suppose. He was the only one who had the perfect idea for Sasuke after he turned rouge, to kill him. Though he probably also wanted his Sharingan, Danzo was also an Uchiha fanboy that way.

Everyone is an Uchiha fan in Naruto verse. No wonder many fanfic authors potray him having a god complex. The only good thing that happened in Naruto in that case, was at the end Sasuke got the trash he always tried to avoid.

Well enough ranting, on to the Chapter.

"Speaking"

"YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 _ **'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'**_

Before I forget, **I do not own Naruto.**

* * *

Chapter 6: My Academy Class

Time Skip 12 Years

Sigh. Wearing a short-sleeved, tan kimono-like blouse with a dark embroidered border, held closed with a black obi, a dark short skirt and stockings that stopped at her thighs, the only thing Namiko could do while looking through her class, watching her friends' everyday antics in the academy, was sigh.

The first one was a boy sitting, or rather sleeping, on his desk just in front of her. The boy had his black hair in a spiky ponytail which made his head look like a pineapple. He was wearing a short-sleeved grey jacket with green-edged sleeves and the Nara clan's symbol on the back, under which was a green-lined mesh T-shirt. The boy, Shikamaru Nara, was from the famed Nara clan known for their ability to manipulate shadows. Sadly they were also known for their lethargic attitude. And as much of a genius Shikamaru was, he did also have their common lazy attitude. The guy found almost everything troublesome to the point that he only attended his exams enough to pass because the thought of picking up the pencil and writing was too troublesome to him. That was also why he was almost at the bottom of the class.

Right next to the slumbering Nara was a fa- plump boy eating from a bag of chips. He donned a green, short-sleeved Haori with a long, white scarf over a white shirt, with the kanji for "food" (食, shoku) on it. He had swirl like markings on his cheeks. The brown haired boy was called Chouji Akimichi, the sixteenth heir of the Akimichi clan, known for their ability to convert calories - to be read as fat - into chakra and manipulate the size of any part of their body. But even with this fearsome technique, Namiko would have given him the award of 'Being the sweetest person in the world' if not for the person sitting on her right, whom when she looked at made her sigh again. But back to Chouji, as described was really a sweet and innocent boy, who wouldn't even hurt a fly. Thats why he forfeited many of the practice spars. He didn't like fighting. Sometimes Namiko thought, how someone like him would become a ninja but then she knew how Chouji fought when he was encouraged enough, like whenever he was called fat.

Next to Chouji was a person, who used to be almost on the top of Namiko's 'Most annoying persons' list though currently the said person looked more irritated than her. She wore a purple outfit consisting of a high-collared blouse and matching apron skirt. The irritated blond was Ino Yamanaka from the Yamanaka clan of the mind walkers. They were able to invade anyone's mind to get any intelligence and also able to control their actions. Said fellow blond was irritated because she didn't get to sit next to the object of her affection, the class brooder, who currently topped her aforementioned list. She was also one of the loudest person in class bested by only one other person. Ino previously had a crush on Namiko's brother, Naruto, but because of his rather obvious attention on someone else, she changed boats and became a brooder admirer instead. She also was very weak in the ninja arts at one point. But improved a lot after Namiko's older sister, Shizune, started teaching in the academy and straightened many of the useless fan girls up.

After Ino, Namiko's thoughts changed to the 3rd loudest person in the class. The messy brown haired boy was Kiba Inuzuka with a white dog sitting on his head called Akamaru. Kiba's attire consisted of dark greyish pants reaching to his calves and a grey, hooded fur-lined coat, with the hood placed on his head. The Inuzukas were known for fighting alongside their canine partners and also for their increased olfactory senses making them exceptional trackers. Kiba, while being a loudmouth, was a good guy even though he did try to hit on her. He, like all other Inuzukas, had the pack mentality which made him to be a great trustworthy friend. His skills in Taijutsu, hand-to-hand combat, were great but when it came to written tests he was no good, thus why he was the dead last of the class. But Namiko knew that he could make a good ninja.

When Namiko first saw Akamaru as a puppy, her first reaction was to squeal, and then snatch the puppy out of Kiba's hands and hug the poor dog, very tightly. Even now she thought Akamaru was the cutest dog around and the fact that he seemed to listen to Namiko more than Kiba had nothing to do with it.

Beside the 3rd loudest was the most silent person in the class, silent to the level of being anti-social, but Namiko knew better. When she first met Shino Aburame, she pegged him to be very shy but then she recalled that almost everyone from the Aburame clan were the quiet type. Shino was sporting the same style as the rest of his clan, consisting of dark sunglasses and a sea-green jacket with a high, upturned collar. The Aburames were a clan who controlled parasitic beetles which supposedly lived inside them. Shino was … well he was quiet and logical but his skills in ninja art were indeed admirable. He may not be as good in close-range fighting but he was very good in long-range.

After Shino, Namiko put her sights on another quiet person, though for a completely different reason. The person wearing a navy blue, short-sleeved shirt with a high collar and white shorts, was the aforementioned class brooder, Sasuke Uchiha. He was from one of the founding clans of Konoha, the Uchihas. They were famous for their powerful Doujutsu (Eye-Technique) type Kekkei-Genkai, the Sharingan, said to be able to copy opponent's justus and moves and also predict what the person is going to do next. Sadly though this clan now only had two alive members with one being the said brooder and another being the person who was the one who killed the rest of the clan, Sasuke's older brother, Itachi Uchiha. Since the dubbed 'Uchiha Clan Massacre', Sasuke had become this broody, lone ranger type. He used to be cheerful, Namiko remembered, and had this friendly rivalry going on with her brother. But now after the massacre, instead of rivalry it seemed he had some kind of hatred towards her brother and …well almost everybody, but as much as she didn't want to admit it, he was the only one aside from her who could at least put up a challenge against her brother, given that her brother held back, a lot, but even so it is indeed undeniable that Sasuke is strong and is only matched by the three people sitting on her bench including her. His brooding attitude also made him cool in the eyes of lots of the girls in the class, almost half of them, making a fan club for him.

Speaking about his fan club, its president was sitting right next to him, looking at him with hearts in her eyes. Sakura Haruno was not from a prestigious clan but she did come from a Shinobi family. She had unusual pink hair and a big forehead and was the former topper of her 'Most annoying person' list alongside being the loudest in the class. She was wearing a red qipao dress that had a zipper and white circular designs with tight dark green bike shorts. She, like half of the other girls in class, including Ino, formed the Sasuke Fan Club. They, as far as she knew, drew lots on who will get to sit next to Sasuke and Sakura seemed to win it more than often. She was also one of the girls who had improved improved because of Shizune-nee's classes. Like Ino, She also didn't have much skills in Ninja arts and had a very small Chakra reserve before it. She, Hinata, Ino and Sakura used to be friends before they came to academy but now as long as the Last Uchiha was around, Sakura's and Ino's attention was almost always on him, straining their friendship.

The person who was her best friend even now was sitting on her right. This was the person who Namiko would probably give the above mentioned award of 'Being the sweetest person in the world'. Hinata Hyuuga was indeed a very sweet person with also being shy, very shy. She had on a cream-coloured hooded-jacket with a fire symbol on the upper sleeves and fur around the cuffs and hem and navy blue pants. She was heiress to the famed Hyuuga clan, which after the fall of Uchiha clan, was considered to be the strongest in Konoha. Though it now faced competition with the newly revived Senju clan, the clan Namiko hailed from. The Hyuuga, much like the Uchiha, also had a Doujutsu type Kekkei-Genkai called the Byakugan which Hinata too inherited, evident from her pale lavender eyes devoid of any pupil, a characteristic of the Byakugan. Unlike Sharingan though, it allowed its user to see all around him/her in a full 360 degree field of vision, gave them a telescopic vision to see anything at a long distance and also allowed the user to look through solid objects. Though its greatest power would be the ability to see a person's Tenketsu (Chakra points). Because of this ability the Hyuugas developed their own fighting style known as Juuken (Gentle Fist), in which they shut off or open Chakra points to disable their opponents, by injecting chakra to that point.

Hinata like all the other Hyuugas was adept at Gentle fist though it was not the case from the start. When Namiko first met Hinata, she was not only extremely shy but also timid and didn't like fighting. This hate of fighting caused her to fail at her clan's Taijutsu hence failing to measure up to the clan's requirements and becoming even shyer and under confident. This changed after she met her and her brother. She would train with them in extra. Just the praises from her brother and also her mother gave her more confidence. Though she still remained shy, she was no longer timid which further caused her to improve her Gentle fist. There were some other factors too, one of them being her obvious attraction and admiration towards Naruto. Even a single encouragement from him lit a fire inside Hinata to become stronger. Though that same attraction and now apparent crush is what made Namiko sigh. Hinata was so shy that she hardly could utter any word to Naruto regarding her feelings.

But she was not the only reason, the other reason was sitting on Namiko's other side. Her twin brother, Naruto, her Onii-sama. Don in a tracksuit with three stripes on the sleeves, mesh under-armour, a pair of black pants, and sandals, her brother was also a genius maybe not like Shikamaru but a genius nonetheless. But somehow even with all that genius, he failed to notice the obvious affection Hinata had towards him and for her life of it, she couldn't understand how. It was not like her brother didn't like Hinata, no quite the opposite, Hinata was the reason why Ino quit on her Onii-sama. Just like Hinata, Naruto's attraction towards Hinata was public knowledge bar Hinata. Ironic really how Hinata was actually oblivious to that. Namiko didn't know how to figure this situation out at all. She knew Hinata was oblivious because she asked her, in a roundabout way, and did confirm that Hinata thought that Naruto liked someone else, a part of her old low confident self being apparent. But she didn't know for sure what her Onii-sama thought. He never came out with a sure answer no matter what way she took and she didn't want to tell him about Hinata's feelings because it would ruin a very cute moment she had conjured up in her thoughts.

Except for his obliviousness or whatever her brother had concerning Hinata, she considered her brother to be perfect. Namiko adored her brother, to the point that her older sister, called her a bro-con, a testament of her calling her brother Onii-sama. Namiko knew that her brother was the strongest among all in their class and maybe even stronger than anyone from the newest Genin. He held the best in class position from the very start of their academy followed by her and then Hinata and Sasuke sharing the third position.

As soon as Namiko finished her thoughts about Naruto, the door to the class opened revealing their homeroom teacher Iruka Umino. His head somewhat resembled that of Shikamaru's with the ponytail and had a scar going across his nose. He was followed by a silver haired person, their other teacher Mizuki. She liked Iruka-sensei more than Mizuki-sensei simply because Mizuki-sensei always seemed a bit odd to her and not in a good way, a thought shared by her Onii-sama.

Just as both the senseis entered the room, a fox like mischievous grin spread on Namiko's face, a grin similar to the one of her Onii-sama's face. At the same time a small smile came upon Hinata's face and if anybody saw Shikamaru's face at that time they would see a half smirk. Kiba looked like he was trying to hold in a laugh and careful inspection of Shino would reveal a slight upward twitch on the corner of his lips.

Almost simultaneously a shout came from outside which urged both the senseis to look out through the window. The sight shocked them greatly.

There the revered Hokage Mountain, where the faces of the past and the present Hokages were carved had a lot of paint smudges on it. The first Hokage's face had tears going down his cheeks while the Second's serious expression was changed into a lecherous one shared by the Third Hokage with something akin to a trickle of blood coming through his nose. The Fourth face looked like he had his eyes closed with blush covering his cheeks. The Second and the Third Hokages eyes were painted so that it looked as if they were looking towards the book that was drawn on the side of the Fourth's face. The book showed an image of a man chasing a woman and was named 'Icha Icha Paradise'. Seeing the look on his senseis' faces, Kiba lost it and started laughing loudly while the rest of the culprits were struggling to school their expressions even when their cover was likely broken.

After learning the Shadow Clone Jutsu (Kage Bunshin no Jutsu) from their uncle, the Senju twins decided to try and teach it to their friends who had the enough chakra to do it. Surprisingly not only Shikamaru, who had the largest reserves then, but Hinata and Kiba were also able to learn it, but were barely able to make a single clone for a very short duration of time. They increased it after some training with the clones but were still unable to make more than one clone unlike Naruto and Namiko, who were able make a very large number of clones with their huge chakra reserves. Its ability to transfer the memories to the original and the rest of the clones upon dispelling made it a perfect tool for pranking. Shino got the news by his bugs planted on each clone which were of their way before even the clones dispelled hence reaching just on time. Chouji though wanted to be in on it, but could not conjure up enough chakra to make a clone so he had to sit this up.

Both the teachers turned towards the laughing Kiba then turned their attention on the whole class. They already had some idea on the identity of the culprits.

"Okay, so who do this? Kiba! Come over here and stand in the front. Naruto, Namiko and Shikamaru too. Now!" Iruka commanded angrily.

Normally their pranking group only had the above mentioned people. Hinata was mostly kept out of it because it would cause problems for her with her clan and Naruto absolutely hated getting her in trouble. Shino, while in their group, did not participate actively in the pranks, he only wanted to observe them and find different ways of infiltration.

The students formed a line in front of their senseis and just stood there.

"Now, why would you do such a thing? You know how important the Hokage Monument is to us, don't you? Naruto, you want to be a Hokage. Would you want your face to be defaced like that by somebody?" asked the irked ponytailed Sensei.

"Well, I think a good laugh is needed once in a while. Today is almost our last day so we wanted to end our academy and start our ninja career with a bang, you know." Exclaimed Naruto, Namiko nodding at his every word. Kiba was still looking like he may start laughing any second.

"So be it then. Because of what you people did everyone in the class will be punished. Everyone will form a line and perform the Transformation Jutsu (Henge no Jutsu) one by one." Ordered Iruka.

Every student came down and made a line on both side of the main culprits. Hinata came and stood next to Naruto, who was standing at the end of the line putting him in between her and Namiko. It was to make sure no one from the Naruto Fan Club, which consisted the other half of the girls of the class, decided to get lucky.

One by one, every student came forward and performed the Jutsu. Shikamaru transformed into Iruka just like the most of the class. Hinata decided to transform into her mother, who looked mostly like her, causing Naruto to start day dreaming till his turn was called. He transformed into a perfect copy of Jiraiya while Namiko transformed into Tsunade.

After everyone's turn was over and everyone were seated again their lecture started but not before Iruka ordered the guilty to clean the monument. Thankfully the paint was washable.

After the class was over, "Remember, tomorrow is your graduation test. It will have a written test, a physical test including Taijutsu, Shuriken and Kunai Jutsu and a Ninjutsu test on three basic Jutsus, the Clone Jutsu (Bunshin no Jutsu) , the Transformation Jutsu and the Substitution Jutsu (Kawarimi no Jutsu). So prepare well, if you pass tomorrow's test you will be officially recognized as a Shinobi of the Leaf." Iruka reminded everyone after which the students started filing out with the four culprits along with Chouji and Hinata heading towards the Hokage Monument. What will the graduation test have for all the promising Shinobis remains to be seen.

* * *

OMAKE 3

Sasuke was running through the Uchiha compound frantically looking for someone who was not dead. Every where he looked, there were dead bodies lying around. Some he recognized like the elderly couple who gave him a Tomato that morning. They were lying in front of their food cart. He was scared but also worried. Worried about his parents and his Nii-san. He shook his head.

 _'No. Nii-san is supposed to be on a mission and Tou-san and Kaa-san are strong. They are alive.'_ He thought, hoped.

He ran into his house founding it quiet. Eerily quiet. He moved towards his parents room. To check on them. He had picked up a Kunai he found on the street in hopes of protecting himself and maybe even his parents. He stalked close to his parents room slowly for some reason he didn't know. During all this, he remained unaware of his stalker.

Scared for her as well as her crush, Sakura continued to follow Sasuke. She had followed him from the academy in hopes of getting a date from him. Who gave an 8 year old any idea of dating instead of scaring them about cooties, very few knew. But she did anyway. He was cheerfully moving towards his home in the beginning but seeing no gate guards at the Uchiha compound gates started sprinting. Sakura didn't know why he started running, she still chased after him into the compound. But stopped at the sight she was greeted with. Blood coated the street. Fresh blood, flowing from the numerous dead bodies lying everywhere her eyes could see. She was horrified. She wanted to run away but instead ran further inside after her crush. She finally stopped inside a house Sasuke ran into. She saw him moving slowly towards a room, from the courtyard.

Sasuke reached the door to his parents room. He knocked on it first hoping either of his parent will open the door. No one did. He got more worried. In desperation, he slid opened the door and sprinted inside. What he saw horrified him more than anything. There in front were both his parents. Lying in a pool of blood, just like the others outside. He couldn't take it anymore. Tears started pouring from his eyes. He wanted to scream but he stopped when he saw something else in the room. Someone.

From the dark corner of the room, a figure stepped forward. He looked very similar to the only other alive occupant of the room. Itachi Uchiha stared at his younger brother with sad eyes. He did not wish for his brother to see this. But it had to be done. He had to make his brother walk on the path of his salvation and hopefully prevent him into turning like the others. So he stepped forward to confront his brother.

On seeing his brother, Sasuke was a bit relieved. At least his brother was alive he thought. He tearfully looked at his brother.

"Nii-san. W..What happened? Why are mother and father...?" He could not say it. He could not even think about it. "Who did this?" he asked. His brothers answer though was not what he expected.

"I'm sorry Sasuke. I had to do it." the elder Uchiha confessed.

"What? You did this, Nii-san? Why?" Sasuke asked very much confused.

"The clan was growing complacent, Sasuke. They were becoming weak by relying on the Sharingan. So I had to test myself. Test, if I was also becoming weak. This was the only way because only an Uchiha can kill another Uchiha." He did not actually believe it but he had to lie. So that his brother could bring his salvation.

Sasuke's confusion turned into anger. Test himself he said. How could he. He gripped the kunai in this hand tighter. Itachi was preparing to use Tsukuyomi on Sasuke but was interrupted by his battle cry.

Sasuke ran with all the speed he could muster towards his brother with kunai in hand. He was almost halfway there, when he got tripped by his fathers shoulder. He tried to stop his fall by putting his hands forward. He was successful. But it were not his hands that stooped his fall. The kunai he was holding before was now lodged miraculously at the exact spot his heart was. It didn't take much time for his life to leave him.

Itachi stared with his Mangekyo dumbfounded. He was going to spare his brother, so that he can grow strong and kill him. But his brother just accidentally killed himself.

Sakura heard Sasuke shout and ran inside to see what was going on, only to witness her crush killing himself by falling on his own kunai. She ignored the shocked form of Itachi and knelt beside Sasuke and started crying over his corpse, seemingly ignoring the corpse of her crush's father below him.

Itachi stared at the girl crying over his brother. He wanted to be happy that at the end his brother had someone like her beside him. But she may know about everything. He would not have confessed if he knew she was there but she had close to no chakra at all, so he couldn't sense her. And now he had to kill her as well. So before the girl noticed him, he moved his sword, piercing the girls heart through her back.

By now even Itachi had tears in his eyes. He wanted to at least leave one Uchiha, aside from him, alive. But his brother ruined his plan spectacularly. He started to leave the room, but took one last glance at his now dead family. He couldn't help but shake his head _'Foolish little brother'_.

* * *

AN:

As promised, the Omake resumes from now. This time with no collateral at all. (The whole Uchiha clan died though.)

The chapter itself was a bit shorter and only informative. It was like a relaxing Chapter after all the running around done in the previous ones. So only introduction of the main characters was done in this one, otherwise the chapter would have become massive. Most of the character wear the same clothes they wore in the anime\manga. Except Naruto and obviously Namiko. Its not that I did not like Naruto's jumpsuite. Unlike others I had no problem with it. I myself am a walking fashion blunder. Fashion just does not make much sense to me. So I mainly copy pasted their outfits from Narutopedia. Naruto's outfit, in case someone was not able to figure out, is the same outfit Minato wore during his academy days. And Namiko's is the one Kushina wore. Yeah, see I'm lazy like that.

Since I already ranted at the start, I will not do so again.

So see you next time. Have a good day ...or night depending on what time you are reading this.


	7. Exams!

Thank you everyone for following my stories till now.

First I would like to inform that from now on I will be updating only once a week. After these three weeks I've realized that its very hard to do this twice a week. It takes a lot of my time to check as well as write the chapters. So please bear with me about this. It will most probably be Saturdays on which I will update or early if I have a holiday or something.

As you saw in the previous chapter, Sakura and Ino are not going to be useless bitches in this fic even if I do hate Sakura. Simply because Tsunade is already in the village and she wanted to train field medics. Sakura ,as week as she was in the first part of canon, was merely so because she neither had the right view for her Shinobi life nor did she have a good teacher.

It is still going to be NaruHina though. No matter how good Sakura gets, even if she becomes more powerful than Kaguya, it is still always going to be NaruHina for me.

Now to answer some reviews,

 **mrsancog :** Thank you, I try to write them relative to the chapter.

 **dbrame91 :** Believe me. I am not losing any content in my chapter just to write omakes. I first complete my chapter only then I decide and write them. And these are not merely Omakes. These are plot ideas that I have in my head, but cannot write them completely because of lack of time. Anyone is free take them and use them in their fics. So I'm sorry but the omakes will continue.

 **TheWateringWizard :** I've seen many animes where this type of situation exists. And if you watch The Last movie then you would see that before Naruto confessed, Hinata was actually confused by Naruto's change in behaviour. That is where I got my idea. And Thanks for following my fic.

 **bloody dragon fang :** Thanks.

 **diegoossorio1 :** Muchas gracias. No te preocupes, no me rendiré pronto.

I hope the Spanish was right. I google translated it. I do not know Spanish. I do know German and some Japanese though.

"Speaking"

"YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

Disclaimer: **I do not own the Naruto franchise.**

* * *

Chapter 7: Exams!

Konoha Academy

It was quiet in the classroom, where the written test for the graduation exams were being held. Quiet except for the sound of pencils scraping or the occasional banging sound coming from Kiba's head banging the desk for every difficult question and the quiet snoring from Shikamaru.

Surprisingly there were also some medicine related question in there. Probably to test the medical knowledge of the Genin aspirants. Abiding to his offer he made to Tsunade 12 years ago, the Hokage assigned Shizune to take classes on medical studies in the academy. Those classes though only covered the basics of medicine that any Genin may need and was mandatory for every Genin. The advanced classes were held after the academy hours in which only interested students were taught the more advanced techniques to become a field medic like the Mystic Palm Justu.

Naruto would have also fallen asleep if not for his terrible luck to kick in and being seated just across Hinata, who was still busy writing. So he was quite busy giving her occasional glances. Same could be said for Namiko except she was staring at Naruto and sighing at his antics which caused Naruto to look towards her with a sheepish look. It was returned by a glare from his twin.

This continued for a while till Iruka announced the finish of the exams followed by another bang from Kiba's desk.

"Okay kids, pencils down. Now Mizuki-sensei will collect your test papers and they will be graded immediately whose completion will be followed by the Taijutsu test. So wait while your tests are being graded. Remember you cannot pass if you don't pass all the tests but will be allowed to take all the test to gauge your skills and take the remedial accordingly." Explained Iruka before starting to grade the papers with Mizuki while the Shinobi aspirants waited.

After 15 minutes Iruka returned and ushered all the Genin hopefuls to the sparing ground. The students were paired up for spars into two groups of boys and girls. Call it coincidence or a set-up, none of them from clans got paired up with other clan children. Iruka then explained the rules, "This will be a pure Taijutsu spar, so no Ninjutsu. The fighters will be graded according to their performance so even if you lose the fight, it does not mean you fail but winning do improve your grade. Okay then first group take positions." And with it the Taijutsu test started.

The fights were not that much interesting, not even the ones with the clan heirs in it. That is not to say that the civilian children were weaker but all of them used the academy style Taijutsu except for Hinata because she practiced her Gentle Fist the most. Though she abstained from using chakra in her strikes.

After the Taijutsu spars was the Shuriken and Kunai throwing. Everyone was given a set of five Shuriken and five Kunai to hit a target at different points. The points targeted would be graded. Sasuke aced this test with highest score followed closely by Naruto, Hinata, Namiko and Sakura, which mildly surprised everyone.

Once that was over the students were brought back to the class for their last test. Iruka again explained the test, "This will be your last test, passing which will give you your Konoha Shinobi Headband (Hitai-ite) and mark you as an official Shinobi of the leaf. You have to perform the three basic academy Jutsus. The Transformation Jutsu, the Substitution Jutsu and the Clone Jutsu perfectly. Now, your name will be called one-by-one and you will perform the Jutsus in front of both me and Mizuki-sensei." Iruka proceeded to go into a room and called for the first student, Aburame Shino, who performed all the jutsus perfectly and his total scores earned him his headband.

Likewise one-by-one students were called and surprisingly everyone was coming out with a headband. Even Kiba, whose head imprint was still visible on the desk, managed to pass the written exams with passable scores. Naruto and Namiko passed too, they had learnt and mastered those Jutsus when they were only 6 so no surprise there.

After the whole test was over and the class was now occupied with headband wearing shinobis, Iruka came in with a proud expression on his face followed by Mizuki.

"I'm very proud and happy that everyone in this class was able to pass the Exams. You are now officially Genins of the Leaf, the lowest rank among shinobi. From now on it is going to be a tough life for you all but I believe with enough determination and hard work you will become great shinobis. You are the future of the village as well as the shinobi world." Said Iruka proudly then continued, "This year's Rookie of the year is Naruto Senju followed by Namiko Senju, who is the Kunoichi of the year shared by Hinata Hyuuga, and the third place is also shared by Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno. Kiba you came last, again." This brought a grin on Naruto's face, a high five between Namiko and Hinata, a scowl from Sasuke, a squeal from Sakura and another bang from Kiba. Iruka continued, "Tomorrow you will be placed in a team and will be introduced to your Jounin senseis who will guide you through your life as a Genin and train you till you become something more. So come back tomorrow here during normal academy times." With that Iruka finished his speech and students started filling out of the academy where their family waited to congratulate them.

* * *

Academy Entrance Ground

Shizune was waiting for her younger siblings. She didn't worry much about them passing. She knew they were capable of passing the academy even before they joined it, so she was there just to pick them up the last time as academy students. She was waiting for them at the grounds with other parents doing the same. Tsunade wanted to be there today but had to hold it off because of an all-time nemesis, people with authority had, the Paperwork. It seemed Hiashi Hyuuga had the same problem who was also missing and Ko Hyuuga was there instead to pick Hinata. She smiled as she thought of the lavender eyed girl her brother was smitten to. If it was not for him and the training given to her by the Senjus, the girl may have not come out of her shell.

Like Hiashi and Tsunade other clan heads like Inoichi Yamanaka, Tsume Inuzuka, Chouza Akimichi and Shikaku Nara were also missing probably for similar reasons, though the Nara clan head might be just being his lazy self. Like father like son, Shizune thought. Either Shibi Aburame had somehow found the perfect weapon against paperwork or he just skipped it to come to his son's graduation. And given the logic driven thought process the Aburames had, he just might have done the former.

Shizune's thoughts were interrupted by the cries of excited newly minted Genins running out of the academy building, towards their parents or other family members. Shizune tried to find her siblings among the crowd but was not able to locate anyone with golden blond hair. The only blonde she spotted was Ino who bolted towards her mother as soon as she spotted her. She spotted Shikamaru walking towards his mother in a manner exactly opposite to Ino accompanied by Chouji who showed his excitement by eating his chips even faster than his normal speed. Kiba was advancing towards his sister very slowly with a slight look of fear evident on his face, probably afraid of being scolded for coming dead last. Shino being his true self quietly approached his father impassively, who mimicked the expression – or lack of -but still managed to praise his son for his achievement. How he did that without showing any expression on his face Shizune will never know.

She waited for a few moments. But the others had already started heading towards their homes, so she was getting worried. She knew both the twins were already aware of her presence thanks to their very high sensing ability. Tsunade once tested their sensing ability by telling them to sense as far as they can while standing in the centre of the village. Remarkably, Namiko was able to sense people even a few meters outside the village walls while Naruto was able to sense just a few meters short of the wall. But unfortunately Shizune was not gifted with such talent and had to resort to the normal way of finding someone. She started to look around.

* * *

Academy Sparing Ground

If the log could talk, it probably would've started begging for mercy from Sasuke, for it was almost reduced to splinters due to Sasuke's rage. Sasuke was angry, scratch that, he was furious. He trained, a lot, to get the power. The power his older brother told him to get. To surpass Naruto. But he failed. Not only was he surpassed by the dobe, he couldn't even defeat his sister neither the shy Hyuuga. For what was worse his pink haired fangirl managed to tie with him. So obviously he was angry. Not only on others but on himself too, for being weak. He was an Uchiha. An avenger. He had to get stronger. He envied Naruto for the power he possessed. He wasn't blind, he knew Naruto held back in every fight, even in the exams. Not only him, his sister did it too and sometimes it seemed even the Hyuuga did it. He just hoped whoever his Jounin sensei was, would be capable enough to help him become stronger.

Mizuki was watching Sasuke from afar. He thought he lost his chance to get the Forbidden Scroll of Seals but when he saw the pure look of anger on Sasuke's face, he changed his plans. Mizuki approached Sasuke and said, "Leave the poor log alone Sasuke. You ranked third you should be proud of yourself."

Sasuke scowled at him and replied, "That is what I don't like. I had to be first. I wanted that power to avenge my family, being third means nothing to me!"

"Now now, you shouldn't be greedy Sasuke. And there are other methods to gain power than by topping mere exams." Mizuki said with a smirk.

Sasuke turned a curious as well as a sceptical eye at Mizuki, "What do you mean?"

Mizuki's grin widened, "What I mean is that there is a special scroll in the Hokage's chamber which has some powerful Jutsus in it. If you can take it and master some of them you can definitely gain the power you want. If you want I can teach some of those justus to you." Mizuki had already realized Sasuke's thirst for power. He was trying to use that hunger for his own gain.

Sasuke became curious but he didn't believe him right away. He wanted the power but the way Mizuki said it seemed very suspicious to him. But after much internal strife his power hungry-self won. He thought if he could get at least one or two powerful Jutsus, it would be a good start. He could think about what to do with Mizuki afterwards. So with a serious expression he replied, "What do I have to do?"

Mizuki's grin almost turned maniacal but he controlled himself and gave him a piece of paper with a smile, "This has all the information you need, and a place to meet so I can train you. But you will have to act tonight before your team selection. And be discrete. Good luck." And with that Mizuki left Sasuke with the instructions.

* * *

Naruto, Namiko and Hinata were there standing on the side hiding against the academy building having heard everything. Naruto saw the look of anger on Sasuke's face and go him towards the sparing grounds. Being the kind soul he was, he decided to talk to him. Naruto knew of Sasuke's obsession with revenge and thirst for power. Even though Sasuke changed their friendly rivalry into enmity, Naruto never did. Of course he was annoyed with the repeated glares and taunts but he still wanted to change Sasuke to as he was before. So Naruto followed Sasuke, Namiko followed her brother with Hinata. He was going to confront Sasuke but stopped on seeing Mizuki approach him.

After overhearing everything the trio was contemplating on what to do. Being a practitioner of sealing and the great grandson of the first Hokage, who made the Scroll of Seals, he knew that the scroll was forbidden and a secret. It was easy to figure out that this was a trap. Some scheme from Mizuki. While he didn't like Mizuki, he still couldn't believe that he could be planning something like this. On the other hand, Naruto knew that Sasuke was smart. He must have figured it out that this was a hoax. But sadly it seemed that Sasuke's thirst for power exceeded his moral sense of duty.

But what Naruto was contemplating about was, if should he confront Sasuke about it or wait for it to happen. Even if Mizuki was planning something, the crime was still not committed and hence couldn't be proven. But if it was a set-up, Sasuke could get caught into it, which Naruto didn't want either. Namiko and Hinata were just looking at Naruto waiting for his decision. They didn't care much about Sasuke but they were friends before and didn't want him to get into trouble. They also didn't know what to think of Mizuki.

After coming to a decision Naruto started walking towards the Hokage tower but changed his route to first get Shizune, who he sensed was in Iruka's office, probably looking for them. He sent Hinata home after meeting Ko on the way. He did not want her to get involved into any of this, just in case this became a bigger mess. He asked Shizune to bring Tsunade to the Hokage's office. Shizune wanted to ask why but Naruto offered to explain it there. Confused, Shizune still went on her way to fetch Tsunade.

* * *

At some random shack in the forest

Sasuke was leaning on a tree breathing heavily. He had managed to get the scroll without alerting anyone and get to the place Mizuki told him about. He had arrived a bit early to get some Jutsus before Mizuki arrived. He knew the Hokage probably have noticed the scroll missing and dispatched ANBUs by now. He will quickly learn a jutsu or two then hand over Mizuki to the ANBU with the scroll.

On opening the Scroll, the first jutsu that Sasuke noticed was the Shadow Clone Jutsu. He knew about this Jutsu. It allowed the user to make Solid Clones instead of the fake ones the normal Clone Jutsu made. He knew Naruto and possibly his sister also knew this Jutsu. He read the description given about the Jutsu about the memory transfer and the directions to do the jutsu. In his haste he ignored reading the chakra needed for this jutsu. So as soon as he tried the jutsu, he poured all the chakra he had into the it to get it working. It did work but at the cost of him almost passing out. Luckily his clone was able to catch him just before he hit his knees. The clone propped him by the tree, rolled the scroll closed and placed it beside him before dispelling. Sasuke relaxed a bit after the residual chakra of the clone returned to him. He wanted to curse himself for not reading the caution but got on guard when he heard feet landing somewhere close to him.

Mizuki leapt down from the tree and stopped a bit far from the propped Sasuke. The silver haired Chunnin had a few big shuriken tied to his back. He noticed Sasuke, now standing with the help of the scroll and walked towards him.

"Good job Sasuke, it seems you have been training, you seem exhausted. Let's call today's training off then, give me the scroll I will keep it." Mizuki offered.

But Sasuke instead backed off with the scroll, "No way am I giving this scroll to you. I know this scroll is supposed to be off limits to everyone. The fact that you know of this makes you suspicious. The ANBU will be here any minute now, I will give this scroll to them and tell them about your schemes _Sensei._ "

Mizuki instead of being afraid just grinned, "And what makes you think the ANBU will believe you, Sasuke. The Hokage has dispatched them to look for you. You are charged for treason for stealing the Scroll of Sealing and as a teacher it is my duty to bring my wayward student to justice."

Sasuke internally panicked a bit but still held a strong front, "I have this piece of paper given to me by you."

Mizuki replied, "Oh that. You got it from some spy in the village. Nothing says its mine. And they won't believe you anyway. The Uchihas were always under suspicion of plotting something against the village. That is why they were always under surveillance. Many believe that the Uchihas were the one who unleashed the Kyuubi 12 years ago. And you know what, I think it's true. Just look at you, jumping at a chance for power at moment's notice. Itachi did a service to the village by killing of your power hungry clan no matter what reason he may have."

Sasuke was now getting angry. He may not have the clan anymore but he had his clan pride. He could not just stand there and listen to this person insulting his clan. But the fool was also giving some information to him. Information he wasn't privy to before. Also he understood that the situation was against him. He didn't have the necessary strength to take down a Chunnin and attacking him may make the matters worse.

Naruto, Namiko and a few ANBUs were already there before Mizuki even got there, watching and listening everything waiting for the moment Mizuki confesses. This was planned by Naruto after he told the Hokage and Tsunade about the interaction between Sasuke and Mizuki and insisted on going with the ANBU. The Hokage was initially against their idea of being involved but reluctantly agreed, since Naruto never got the information about the place where Sasuke was supposed to meet Mizuki. Using the twins' sensing ability they were able to find Sasuke fast and easily.

Mizuki now realising the waste of time spoke, "As much as I would like to hand over another traitorous Uchiha to the ANBU, that will ruin my plan to take the Scroll of Seals to Orochimaru as a gift and become even more powerful than this wretched village can make me. I would have taken you with me Sasuke, but you will just be a burden to me in your condition. So I'm just going to save you the humiliation of being called a traitor and end your life here. Consider this as a last act of goodwill from a sensei." Mizuki took one of the giant shuriken off his back and threw it towards Sasuke. Sasuke with his tried body knew he would not be able to dodge the shuriken and awaited his demise with closed eyes but instead felt himself being pushed down followed by a sound of thunk. Sasuke opened his eyes to see a blond wearing a white jacket, which he realised was Naruto. Beside him was another blonde clad in yellow, both standing with Kunais in hand facing Mizuki and the giant shuriken embedded in a tree behind him.

Mizuki was enraged but still kept his grin, "How ironic. Senjus saving an Uchiha. But now that you've heard what I said you must die too." Mizuki readied his other shuriken but was immediately restrained by set of hands belonging to the ANBUs that accompanied the twins.

"Surprised? We overheard your conversation in the academy Mizuki-sensei. And the Hokage gave us the benefit of doubt. Considering we are probably the best sensors in village aside from the Hyuugas," Naruto started.

"We were given the task to track you down. And sent some ANBU with us to confirm the suspicion and apprehend the culprit. Though he is still mad at you for stealing the scroll, Sasuke." Namiko finished by addressing Sasuke. Turning back towards Mizuki, She continued, "I've always thought you were odd Mizuki-sensei. Guess I was right." Namiko said.

Mizuki, now restrained by ANBU, growled at all three of them but did not say anything.

"Mizuki, you are being held for treason against the village by coaxing a newly minted Genin in stealing the Forbidden Scroll of Seals. You will be taken to the T&I for further interrogation. Sasuke Uchiha, you are to report to the Hokage and explain your case." stated an ANBU with a cat mask. She nodded towards the twins then proceeded to take Mizuki away.

Naruto turned towards Sasuke and gave him a hand to help him up but Sasuke slapped it away instead to stand up on his own. He turned away from them and was going to jump before Naruto interrupted, "It's true you know." Sasuke stopped in his tracks and turned towards him.

"I don't know how your clan was Sasuke. But what you did, did nothing to refute their claims. Jumping for power even when you knew this was a trap. I know you probably want to ask the Hokage about the surveillance and everything, but your actions will not refute the claims Sasuke." Continued Naruto.

"You say you know about it. How can you know about how I feel when he insulted my clan? The Senju and Uchiha made this village together but only Senju were praised for it and the Uchihas were ridiculed. He said that my clan were monitored continuously by the village and they call us traitorous. I want answers and I want them now. Itachi said he killed the clan to gain power, to test his limits. But I don't anymore." exclaimed Sasuke angrily.

"And what would you do if he did? What would you do if your clan indeed was planning something?" Naruto asked calmly.

"THE UCHIHAS WOULD NEVER DO THAT!" Sasuke shouted in returned.

"How can you be so sure? You were only what, 8 then? You mean your father told you everything happening in the clan? You don't have anything to prove your clan's innocence but the village has a proof that the Sharingan can control the Kyuubi. Madara Uchiha used it against the First Hokage in their battle. You should keep your facts clear before claiming something Sasuke." Naruto countered.

Sasuke getting even more enraged attempted to punch Naruto, who just sidestepped and chopped him on the back of his neck making him unconscious. He slugged the unconscious Uchiha on his shoulder and nodded to his sister and both of them leapt towards the Hokage tower. They thought that before the rage blinded Sasuke can barge in the Hokage's office and make more mess, they should explain the situation first. Naruto knew whatever Mizuki said might have been just to taunt the Uchiha, but there might as well have been some truth hidden in it.

* * *

OMAKE 4

Mizuki knew Sakura hated Naruto. She hated him because she believed that he was the reason why her Sasuke-kun was not at the top of the class. But Mizuki didn't care about that. He just wanted to use that for his own gain.

Sakura was curious. Mizuki-sensei had called her to the roof of the academy. She wouldn't have gone if not for the fact that it had something to do with Sasuke. She would do anything for her Sasuke-kun.

Mizuki saw Sakura and smiled, "Ah, Sakura. I thought you would go home to tell your parents about your graduation and wouldn't come. But I'm glad you came though, I have something very important pertaining to Sasuke. I hope you will listen?"

Sakura made a determined face and nodded. Mizuki smiled again and said, "You see, I believe Sasuke should have been the topper in the class. I think the Senjus pulled some strings there. While Naruto may be stronger than Sasuke, I believe Sasuke is overall better."

Sakura scowled at that. She did not even believe that Naruto was stronger than Sasuke. No one was stronger than her Sasuke-kun. That guy just cheated somehow, she just didn't know how. But Mizuki wasn't finished though, "But I have a way to make Sasuke stronger and I believe you can help him. Do you want to know how?" He asked.

Sakura again made a determined face. Mizuki was hard pressed to not show his evil smile.

* * *

Sakura was leaning against a tree holding a scroll bigger than her. It was probably even heavier than her since she barely ate anything to keep herself thin. Unhealthily so. She was also panting and her legs wouldn't even move. That was because her physical capabilities were lower than even a normal healthy civilian. But she still smiled. She had done it. She stole the Forbidden scroll of Seals and ran as fast as she could, which wasn't much fast. With this scroll she could help Sasuke get even stronger and Sasuke would be grateful to her and then he will propose to her and then they would get married and…

Her internal rant was interrupted by sound of a twig snapping. Turning her head she saw the object of her affection walking towards her. After she got the plan from Mizuki, she went straight to Sasuke and told him all about it. Needless to say Sasuke was all for getting stronger. But he couldn't risk getting caught. So he encouraged Sakura to go for it.

Sasuke looked at Sakura and then at the scroll, "Good job Sakura. With this I will be able to defeat that Usuratonkachi and his sister and kill Itachi." Sakura was all glad to get praised by her beloved. When Sasuke told her to get the scroll, she didn't object at all. She wanted to be the one to give him this power.

They were both joined by Mizuki once he landed there. He was surprised to see Sasuke there but didn't say anything. It was even better. If he could get Sasuke to Orochimaru, his lord would probably be even more pleased.

Taking this into account, he said, "Good work Sakura. And I see you told Sasuke about it too." He turned to Sasuke and continued, "Sasuke, I truly believe you should have been the Rookie of the year instead of that demon. I know you are better than him."

Sasuke scowled at that, "I am better than him but he is definitely stronger than me."

Mizuki grinned wider, he got a new idea, "But do you know how his is that strong?" He asked. Sasuke and Sakura became confused and shook their head. Mizuki continued, "You see, when the Kyuubi attacked, the Fourth Hokage wasn't able to kill it. It was a lie to make the Hokage look stronger. While he was able to weaken it, he could not kill it. But since the Kyuubi was weakened, it split itself and turned itself into two babies. You get it right? They are not strong because they trained or something, they are just demons posing as humans."

Both of his audience gave him wide eyed looks. They never knew about any of this. But it all made sense to Sakura now. That was how Nar- the demon was able to defeat Sasuke, even though Sasuke should be the strongest human alive.

On seeing realisation come to them, Mizuki threw is trump card, "You see Sasuke. The higher ups of this village are nothing but liars they glorify the Hokages deeds so that people will look up to them, but never let anyone become stronger than them. So I have decided to leave this village. I know someone who is strong and can make me stronger. He and that scroll can help us get stronger Sasuke. If you want, I can take you to him. What do you say?"

Sasuke fell into thought. He did believe that the village was keeping him behind. And aside from the clan compound there was nothing in this village for him. He would just become stronger, kill Itachi and then come back to this village. He was an Uchiha, so they will welcome him anyway.

So Sasuke nodded surprising Sakura, "I accept. I will go with you." Mizuki's grinned widened. Now there was only one thing to do. Sakura over there was now useless. But she had intel on him. He to tie those loose ends.

"Alright then. But there is one condition or say test Sasuke. If you do it then I'm sure he will train you." Mizuki said. Sasuke became sceptical but nodded anyway, so Mizuki continued, "You see, what we are going to do will definitely mark us as missing-nins. And Sakura over there knows everything. So, I want you to kill her. They could use her to track us."

Sasuke was shocked. But not more than Sakura. She had done her job. What was Mizuki-sensei telling her crush to do? But she believed on her love. He would not do it. But his next action shocked her even more.

Sasuke took out a kunai from his pouch and turned to Sakura, "I'm sorry Sakura, but this is in order to get stronger. I must kill Itachi." Then without saying anything further, he ran and stabbed Sakura with the kunai exactly where her heart was. Sakura could only stare at her crush in disbelief before her life left her.

Seeing the work done, Mizuki didn't want to waste any more time and told Sasuke to take the scroll and hurry. Just as he was going to leap, two ANBU stopped his way.

Mizuki cursed himself. He wasted too much time. He didn't know how ANBU caught them this fast but know he had to do something. He could not fail here. But he could not take Sasuke along with him now. He would just slow him down. And the scroll was also with Sasuke. But he would have to leave it now. The first priority was to get away. With that decided, he quickly took a Fuma Shuriken off his back and threw it at Sasuke.

Sasuke was already shocked at seeing the ANBU arrive as well as for his first kill, so he was not ready for the giant shuriken coming towards him. The shuriken too, turned out to be not sharp enough. Instead of passing clean through Sasuke, it cleaved him in half and took the torso with it, embedding itself to the tree behind him, against which Sakura's body lay. Sasuke's upper half of the body rested to the giant embedded shuriken just above Sakura's head.

His job done, Mizuki tried to run away opposite to the ANBU, but was immediately taken down by a set of kunai to his legs, rendering him unable to move.

* * *

At the end, after interrogation Mizuki and Sasuke were announced traitor to the village. Sakura was spared because she was fooled by a trusted teacher.

* * *

AN:

Thats the 7th chapter. The exams are finished and its Sasuke who stole the scroll. Bet, you didn't think of that. I have read hardly one or two fic, in which Sasuke was involved in the Mizuki incident instead of Naruto. But there are no fics that has an ending like mine. I hope.

I kind of forgot to include Medical ninjutsu test in the previous chapter. Sorry about that. But instead of editing that and make you people read it again, I made it as a surprise element of the exam. Again sorry about that.

And another long ass omake. This one was in my mind even before I thought how the chapter will be. I wanted to make Sasuke's death in this gory. I hope I was able to write it as such. Though the idea of Sakura stealing the scroll came to me afterwards. Since in all Omakes Sakura followed Sasuke, I thought to reverse the trend. And with this, we've seen all of the team 7 stealing the scroll. I've read some fics, with Hinata stealing it too.

I've said this before and I will say it now. Sasuke fans who are waiting for him to be a main character and get all the glory, should only read a few more chapters and definitely NOT read my Omakes. Because Sasuke WILL die in them. He will not die in the original story though. He just won't be as important, at all.

How did you like this chapter and the Omake? Do let me know in the reviews. If there's a mistake somewhere, be sure to point it out. Hasta la próxima.


	8. Secrets

Thank you for your reviews and follow ups.

Okay. I know I said in 3rd Chapter that I was not going to use much honorifics. But then I realised, some of them are needed, otherwise Naruto (the series) will not look like Naruto anymore, at least for me that is. So to keep the flow correct, I'll use some. Sorry about that.

Now to answer some reviews,

 **ZeroKaze :** Thanks for that. I changed the spellings in the chapter.

 **bloody dragon fang:** It gets more interesting after team placements. Just wait for it.

 **TheWateringWizard :** I admit, it will not be 'I love you-I love you too, Let's go out'. And since I've already set it where Naruto and Hinata already know each other for a long time, there wouldn't be any freaking out. They are still 12, just hitting puberty, the 'Old enough to kill, old enough to drink, old enough to f#$%' does not always work. But don't worry it won't be long.

Onward with the chapter.

"Speaking/YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

No, **Still do not own Naruto.**

* * *

Chapter 8: Secrets

Hokage's Office

The room was tense. It was like a stare off going on between the old Hokage and the newly minted Genin. The only females in the room could do nothing but watch and the last occupant of the room was fortunately still unconscious because of the chop on the back by the staring Genin. The reason for this stare off was the words Naruto spoke almost immediately on his entry in the Hokage's office.

"Was what Mizuki said really true?" He knew the Hokage watched everything through his crystal ball, so no more explanation was needed.

That was a few minutes ago. Two set of calm eyes staring at each other. But they knew one thing, this needed to be resolved before the last occupant woke up.

Finally after getting bored of it and also due to curiosity Tsunade decided to break it off.

"Naruto, even if something did happen, they are still village's secret. You shouldn't pry on them. Sensei probably has his own reasons to do whatever he did." She scolded. While she was curious about these new…developments, she knew being the Hokage meant something like that needed to be done.

"I know that Mother but if Sasuke knew that Hokage-sama is hiding something like that from him, about his clan, he will only just become more difficult and may just do something we don't want."

"But Naru-"

"He's my friend, Mother. Even though he may have stopped being one after the massacre, I know he can be saved from the destructive path he has chosen. The path similar to your teammate." Naruto pointed out. While his tone did not change from his calm one, the Hokage and his lone female student felt it like an arrow to the heart.

Especially the Third. It brought back the memories of his failures in stopping his now wayward student. He knew what Naruto said was true and an unfaithful Uchiha will not be good news for the village. Especially if the said student caught wind of it. But the secret about what actually happened would not be easily explained when he himself did not condone what happened. He did not know how the news will affect Sasuke's young mind. But maybe with more people bearing the news with him will help him. With that in mind he started,

"This is a SS class secret that only I and the three elders know about the village and I would like it to remain as such. That applies to you too Sasuke."

This made all the blonds in the room look at the now announced awake Sasuke, who was feigning sleep. After being pointed out, Sasuke promptly got up and stood in front of the Hokage with the twins. All the others just looked at him oddly but he said nothing, so the Hokage just started.

"Now Sasuke there will be many times where you won't like what I say but I would like to finish it uninterrupted." The Hokage requested which was answered by a small nod from Sasuke.

"It is true that the Uchihas were suspected for instigating the Kyuubi incident and were under constant observation. But it was not only by the officials, the villagers also accused them of it. So the Uchiha police started reacting badly against such suspicions. And the situation was getting worse. That is where your brother comes in Sasuke." The Hokage paused to gauge his audience's reaction. Other than Sasuke's tightened fist there was nothing much. So he continued

"Itachi and Shisui Uchiha, they were the ones who brought the worst news in that situation. The Uchihas, fed up of their situation, were planning a coup."

"THAT'S A-"Sasuke started but was stopped by Naruto's hand on his shoulder.

"Sasuke, what you think and what you know, we will hear it at the end. First listen to everything." Naruto told him calmly. Sasuke reluctantly did.

"This came from your own brother and Shisui, Sasuke. And sadly it is true. We tried to negotiate with them, with your father. But they wouldn't listen. As a last resort Shisui suggested to use his Kotoamatsukami, a very high level Genjutsu, on your father and make him give up the idea. But something happened. One of our former councillors, Danzo Shimura, secretly attempted and was successful in taking one of Shisui's eyes. I don't know what exactly happened after that but Shisui's body was found in the Naka River, though devoid of both eyes. But after his death we were only left with one choice. A choice that I regret even now. The only choice left to avert the awaiting internal civil war, was annihilation. The Uchiha clan needed to be stopped. The internal struggle would cripple the village that could have encouraged other villages to attack us and thus starting the Fourth Shinobi war." The Hokage paused.

Sasuke clenched his fist. Danzo Shimura. He knew that name. Three years ago he was declared a criminal at a level just below Madara Uchiha. Not all the information was given out, but apparently he carried out many illegal activities inside and outside the village and was the leader of an unauthorized group of ANBU believed to be amassed to go against the Hokage and as such was executed on many charges.

The Hokage finding his audience quiet continued, "Itachi, he was a pacifist. Moreover, he was loyal to the village and believed that the clan flourished with the village instead of the opposite idea the rest of the clan seemed to have. That was why he took it upon himself. To kill his own clan." The old man explained further.

"But why kill the whole clan? Why not only the conspirators?" Namiko asked speaking for the first time. She didn't think much about the former councillor's action. She knew about a few things he did, all of them illegal. This didn't surprise her.

"To save the remaining honour of the clan. If the news got out that only a few people, the whole ninja population of the Uchiha clan, were killed, it would surely raise suspicion. It would have gotten increasingly difficult to keep it a secret and it would hurt Uchihas' reputation even more. The reason Sasuke here gets treated with respect is because of Itachi's sacrifice. But he didn't do it without conditions." The Hokage admitted making everyone curious.

"He told us to keep it a secret to everyone and ensure that Sasuke was cared for in the village. He accepted to be labelled as a criminal and become a missing ninja to save not only the village but you too Sasuke. I don't know what he told you before he left but I for one know that Itachi didn't kill your clan for power. He still remains loyal to the village. Protecting her from outside." The Third finished.

Everything became silent again in the room. All of them had a contemplating expression on their faces except for Sasuke. The tell-tale signs of rage was slowly appearing on his face. Signs that Naruto noticed. Personally he thought nothing about what happened to the Uchiha clan. Sure there could have been something else that could have been done. But since he wasn't there at that time, he couldn't judge the exact situation. And if what the Hokage said was true, that the whole clan was behind the coup, then that probably was the only thing they could have done. He did not know what Kotoamatsukami was, but if Danzo's intervention caused that plan to fail and a whole clan to be killed off, then he was glad he and his sister were part of the reason a criminal like that was brought to justice. Meanwhile though he gauged Sasuke's reaction and was ready to intervene.

And surely enough, as soon as he finished his thought process, Sasuke was about to lunge towards the Hokage. Since the explanation was still going on, he decided to restrain him by putting him in an arm lock.

"LET ME GO, NARUTO. HOW DARE HE….HOW DARE HE…" Sasuke was furious and struggled to get free from Naruto's hold but against the brute strength of Tsunade's son, it was futile.

"Sasuke, what you were trying to do was treason and condition or not would have you put into jail or executed for attacking the Hokage. Calm yourself. Attacking the Hokage won't achieve anything." Tsunade told the squirming Genin in her son's hold which did not do much except stop his struggle, still Naruto did not let him go.

Seeing his rage the Hokage sighed, "I understand your anger towards me Sasuke but I am the Hokage and have to think foremost about the village. I wish I could have saved your clan but if I would have tried to, the result would have been even more drastic."

Sasuke was conflicted. He could never imagine his father doing something like that. But he also knew that Itachi was also not like how he portrayed himself that night. He knew something was missing, something was wrong with Itachi. But the only thing that was going through his mind was that it was the Hokage's and the elders fault. It was because they ordered him to do it. ' _Yes, that's right Itachi would never do it himself. It was because he was ordered to. No, not ordered but probably he was forced to do it. Yes, the Hokage said something about not harming me. They probably blackmailed him. So, he did everything to save me. He –'_

"Thinking yourself into your own delusions won't work Sasuke." Naruto said from behind him effectively breaking out Sasuke from his internal ramblings and turned his head sideways to look at Naruto. But Naruto changed his gaze from Sasuke to the Third.

"Hokage-sama, about what you said. What proof do you have that Itachi was not blackmailed into it by the higher ups?" Naruto accused.

This shocked everyone. Sasuke was shocked that he asked the exact same question he was thinking about while the others were shocked that Naruto would accuse the Hokage of something like that.

"Onii-sama/Naruto!" Both female blondes exclaimed at the same time.

But, "You're right. I do not have any proof of it except for my verbal testimony. Even if I was to ask the elders they would deny it to save face and not only will I lose my Hokage seat for revealing such information to Genins, you might be executed too, to avoid information from spreading further. So, the only thing that I can say is that I am telling you this on the risk of my authority as Hokage." Hiruzen admitted shocking everyone again.

While it seemed to be a reliable reason to believe the Hokage, it still wasn't enough to persuade Sasuke to believe otherwise. As a matter of fact, even Naruto was not completely satisfied. While Namiko and Tsunade were thinking something completely different. They still weren't able to believe that Naruto was questioning the Hokage, the authority he dreamt to have. His sister was the one to put her question to words.

"But Onii-sama, how could you say that to Jiji? Don't you trust him?"

"It's easy for us to trust him Namiko because whatever happened didn't happen to us. But for someone like Sasuke, who was just told that his father and his whole clan were traitors instead of his brother like he thought and what happened was because of it, then it's not that easy to swallow." Naruto said shocking Sasuke that he was doing it for him.

"But", Naruto continued, "Sasuke, Jiji is the Hokage. He knew the chance of you believing him was less and he may end up losing a promising Shinobi in turn breaking his promise to Itachi. But still he told you everything. Do not take his confession lightly."

Sasuke again fell into his thoughts. What Naruto said was true. The Hokage wouldn't disclose such kind of info in front of this many people and lie about it. But still,

"Is there any way?" Sasuke whispered.

"What?" Hiruzen asked Sasuke not exactly catching what he said.

"Is there any way, to contact Itachi? You said he is still loyal to the village right? I want him to tell me everything about this. If he is still loyal to the village then that means you should have some way of contacting him. I want to hear the truth from him. If you say you cannot do that, then I'm sorry but I may not be able to serve this village anymore." Sasuke said in louder but still controlled voice.

Hiruzen was not pleased. True, he could call Itachi back for it, but doing so would probably blow his cover in whatever he was doing. But it seemed he didn't have a choice. He couldn't let Sasuke become rouge. Putting the Sharingan aside, if he didn't do it he probably would lose the faith of his grandson figure and with him his granddaughter and student's too. He could not have that.

"Alright. I will call Itachi for it. But the meeting has to be done in secret and in my presence. We cannot let the village populace know that Itachi just strolled into the village and then out without repercussions. I will send for him today, when would he be here depends on where he is now, of which I am not aware of." Hiruzen accepted, "Till then Sasuke, I request you not to disclose this information to anyone even if someone says it's for me. The same goes for the others."

"Now then, tomorrow is the team arrangements I think you should go home. Again I'm sorry for what had to be done Sasuke, I hope you think about it more before you do anything drastic." said the Hokage dismissing the others. Everyone reluctantly did so starting with Namiko.

Once everyone was out, Sasuke turned towards Naruto with a serious look, "Why did you do it for me there Naruto? Risking yourself a charge of treason."

Naruto just smiled, "You may have stopped being my friend long ago Sasuke, but I never leave a friend behind. You are my friend and always will be." He said making Tsunade and Namiko smile too but then he turned serious and said, "But know this Sasuke. If you decide to go against the village then as a friend it will be my job to put you down, to stop you from harming the village as well as yourself. I won't hesitate there either."

Sasuke just nodded and turned to walk away, "Naruto, I want to ask a favour. I want you to be there with me when Itachi comes back. If what the Hokage says is true then you would also have to apologise, right?" he said without turning back.

"Sure thing Sasuke." Was Naruto's answer. Sasuke, after getting his answer, started walking again.

* * *

Senju Compound

Having finished their dinner, after Naruto got scolded for misbehaving in front of the Hokage by Tsunade, the Senju family including Shizune were now sitting around the dinner table, again with serious expressions. This seriousness was because of a statement from Tsunade.

"There is something I have to tell you concerning you two."

And now the twins were waiting for this 'something' to be told.

Tsunade wanted to lay off this discussion after today's ordeal but thought getting over it now would be better. So with a sigh, Tsunade started, "Now what I'm about to tell you is an SS class secret known to a few people but once I tell you it will be your choice to tell anyone or not, but I advise against it unless it is someone you really trust. Do you get it?" After getting a couple of nods she continued, "Okay, You already know about the Kyuubi incident. You also know how your birthdays are on that very day. The thing is, the story about the Fourth killing the Kyuubi is not completely true." Tsunade said shocking the twins. To them the Fourth was their hero, especially for Naruto. He wanted to surpass and become a Hokage and one of his idol Hokages was the Fourth who gave his life to save the village. The idea that what he did was not true was outrageous.

"Now before you go thinking wrong, the Fourth did save the village from the Kyuubi but not by killing it. As you already know, Tailed Beasts (Bijuu) like the Kyuubi are entities made completely out of chakra. They do not have a body to kill and hence are also said to be immortal. That's why the Fourth did something else to stop it. He sealed it." This relieved the twins first and shocked them again. They knew about what the Bijuu's were. Being a descendent of the first Hokage, Hashirama Senju, you normally read about it. They also knew that their great grandmother, the First's wife, Mito Uzumaki, had the Kyuubi sealed inside of her. Then it hit them, then it meant that the Kyuubi was sealed inside someone again by the Fourth Hokage.

Seeing realisation come to their faces, Tsunade braced herself before saying, "I see you got it. Yes, it was sealed inside a person just like your great grandmother. But you see to seal that much big chakra entity into someone is difficult especially during a fight. So what the fourth did was divide the Kyuubi's chakra and sealed them into two people." That revelation hit the twins like a ton of bricks. Seeing their reaction Tsunade almost cursed herself for telling them this. But it was their right to know what they carry so she continued.

"Yes, he sealed it into you two. Naruto, you have the Yang half of Kyuubi's chakra while Namiko has the Yin half." Tsunade finished and waited for her children's reaction. Shizune was also listening to this and waited for her them.

During the course of 12 years from when Tsunade adopted the former Namikaze twins, she and Shizune had become very attached to them. To Tsunade, it felt odd at the beginning to have kids. She had once dreamt of having them with Dan, but lost all hope after his death. Then at one point she did have a baby, but gave him up to his father before leaving the village because of her emotional turmoil. She still regretted not being with her first child and instead handing him to his father. That was also the reason why she didn't want to adopt the twins at first. It brought the memories of her own child back, who she abandoned just for the sake of avoiding her sorrow. She never thought she would be able to give as much love to these children as a mother should give considering the sin she committed.

But after saving them from the kidnapper, she understood. She was doing it all over again. Abandoning something for her own selfish reasons. That is why she decided to adopt them. And she considered it the best decision of her life. The day they called her mother, she felt all the joy a mother could have felt. She knew it didn't correct her past mistakes but she thought she was able to feel like being a mother. And now she couldn't even think about a life without them. Never did she feel that they were adopted, she raised them as if they came out of her own womb.

Shizune for her part was the same. When her master adopted the twins she was not much older than 15 but still when they started calling her Nee-chan, an indescribable feeling filled her being. After losing her family, she never thought she would get any siblings. But now after these many years, she didn't think of them of anything else than her brother and sister, she also started calling Tsunade her mother.

For these reasons, both of them were anxious about the twins' reaction. But when Naruto hit his palm with the base of his fists with a look of realisation they became confused.

"So that's what the seal holds. It did indeed look like holding something big and holding it very tightly I must say. Even with my knowledge of seals, I was hardly able to understand it except for the part that said that it was holding something." Naruto said. Being a Fuuinjustu (Sealing arts) specialist he was able to understand that much of the part of the seal. While Namiko was also well versed in seals she normally leaned more towards Medical Ninjutsu her mother taught her. Naruto had more interest in learning seals from his perverted uncle than Medical Ninjutsu, but their Sannin family made them learn everything anyway.

"Right, Onii-sama also said that both his and my seal had a very intricate difference. So that was probably due to the difference in chakra natures, right Onii-sama?" Namiko asked.

"Exactly. And also an even numbered seal is always good in sealing something related to chakra so as not to disrupt the balance of chakra in the person." Her brother explained further.

Tsunade, for her part, just sweat dropped, while Shizune did it while smiling _'Should have known.'_.

"All of this and you just caught the seal part. Did you not hear the thing about a giant Bijuu sealed inside of you?" Tsunade exclaimed to which Namiko answered.

"We did Kaa-chan (Mother) but then great grandmother also had it sealed inside of her." Namiko started,

"So we thought it isn't that bad. It's like having something special handed down to you from the family. In this case a giant nine tailed fox demon." Naruto finished.

Tsunade just smiled at their answer. It was true. The Kyuubi was first sealed into her grandmother, then into their biological mother, though they were currently unaware of it, and now them. But there was still some warning left for them.

"It's good that you're taking this positively. But not everyone who carry Bijuu in them are treated well. Jinchuurikis, as what you are called, are normally hated in their villages for what they carry because the Bijuu's at some point of time have wreaked havoc to their villages and still fear them. Even here in Konoha if the civilians were told about you, you would be hated. That is why it was kept a secret till now, even from you, and why it should remain as such till the time is right. While the people have had enough time to heal from the wounds caused by Kyuubi's rampage 12 years ago some may still hold a grudge. But most of the ninja population except the Chuunins and Genins know about this. It would be better not to tell this to everyone and only to the ones you trust." Tsunade explained.

"But Kaa-chan, how come we haven't felt its presence in ourselves till now. I mean if we have the strongest Bijuu inside of us won't we feel it?" Namiko asked.

"I guess the seal has a key which can tighten and loosen it and with the six resistance seal on us it was difficult to tell even for us." Naruto explained.

"Correct Ruto-chan, the pervert made it such that you don't feel it. He knew if you took to the seals how normal Uzumakis do then you would probably figure it out yourself or may even end up using its chakra prematurely. That's why he tightened the seal just enough so that you don't feel it, neither do you feel the back lash when it is loosened, which we will do after your team assignments." Tsunade explained.

The trio called each other affectionately in times like this but changed to formal greetings when times required like in front of Hokage, even then it was only because of the seriousness of the talk they had.

"So Ero-oji (Pervy Uncle) is coming tomorrow. Good, I wanted some advice on a new seal I was working on." Naruto said.

"But, Onii-sama, you said you will work on my Taijutsu tomorrow." Namiko whined.

"Of course I will Hime (Princess). We will work on the seals afterwards." Assured Naruto bringing a smile on his sister's face.

"Why don't I work on your Taijutsu tomorrow Miko-chan and let Ruto-chan work on his seal with his Oji-san (Uncle)." Their mother offered cracking her knuckles.

Namiko paled after hearing that but then grinned, "Bring it on then Kaa-chan."

"Ruto-kun you shouldn't spoil her so much." Shizune chastised.

"I don't know what you are talking about Nee-chan." Naruto countered.

Shizune just shook her head. After some more arguing and bonding they decided to call it a night and proceeded to their rooms.

Previously the next day was only supposed to be special because of the team assignments but it suddenly got even more important. What more did the next day hold for them?

* * *

Sasuke's Apartment

The young Uchiha was laying on his mattress, wide awake, unable to sleep. The secret unveiled to him was too great.

Ever since the massacre, his only goal was to kill his brother to get his revenge but now, he didn't know. If what the Hokage said was true then his brother was innocent. Though he DID kill the clan but apparently the clan itself was guilty. His father, and maybe even his mother. He didn't want to think that his parents were traitors but the proof said otherwise. The way the Hokage said it, he didn't seem to be lying or else he would have been killed by now for having confidential information.

The only thing he could do now was wait for his brother and ask him directly and hopefully get the truth.

Then there was the team assignments. He didn't care much for others but it was true that he would need a team to get stronger. Then a face came to his mind, someone he left behind in his path for revenge. But if there wouldn't be any revenge, would there be any reason to push his friends away? Truthfully if that friend wouldn't have been there today then he probably would've been in a jail cell for treason. That's why if he wanted to be in a team then he wanted it to be with his old rival and friend. With that thought somehow sleep overcame him and he started his unconscious wait for tomorrow.

* * *

AN:

No omake on this one. I did have an idea but after I wrote it, it just didn't fit right with me. So I deleted it.

So yeah the secret to Uchiha massacre is out. I know it seems odd to reveal it to a 12 year old Sasuke, but a revenge obsessed 16 year old Sasuke is no different from a 12 year old one. And I feel if he was explained by a proper person like Itachi, he would have understood, somewhat. Tobi obviously spun the story to make his hate grow.

The secret to Kyuubi is also out. Since the Mizuki incident didn't do it, it would have to be done somehow. Again I think if Naruto was told about it by someone else, say Hokage, he wouldn't have reacted to it negatively either. Mizuki literally told him he was a demon. And the extreme level of stupid Naruto (over 9000!) was in the cannon, he would obviously buy it.

So next is team assignments, who will be in whose team? We will see in the next chapter of Twice Fated. So stay tuned.


	9. Who is going to be in my team?

Thank you for your reviews. Twice Fated reached a 100 follows. Thank you very much for that.

Let's answer some reviews,

 **bloody dragon fang :** Thank you. I will try to keep it interesting and not bore experienced readers with the same old stuff.

 **ZeroKaze :** No problem. I thank you very much for pointing that out. I have changed it in the chapter.

 **daphne121 :** Thank you and here you go.

 **Sparta10 :** All will be revealed in due time. Everything cannot be revealed in a single sweep now, can it? That is what keeps the story going.

 **TheWateringWizard :** Indeed, I think Sasuke could have been redeemed beforehand but every one of these ideas are possibilities, people can write them any way they want and since the world setting itself is fiction, the number of possibilities are great. Now I do apologize early on though. You'll know what for.

 **diegoossorio1 :** Again, all will be revealed in due time. I will not leave important stuff like that on guesswork. But a proper setting is needed to reveal those facts.

 **orien123 :** Thank you. If I am right on the meaning of 'cookie-cutter', I guess you mean that most of the first chapter looks like copy pasted. Yeah sorry about that, but there was no reason to change it much.

Okay, enough of that, onto the chapter,

"Speaking/YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

I wonder how much money it would take to buy **Naruto franchise** , **it definitely isn't mine.**

* * *

Chapter 9: Who is going to be in my team?

Senju Compound

Everyone among the Senju, a total of four people, were early risers. Everyone except the oldest. Tsunade Senju was still in her bed while her three children were going about doing their morning routine. Naruto and Namiko were excited for their team placements. So they were hardly able to sleep. Shizune was the one to wake up first everyday anyway. She already had the breakfast going while the twins completed their morning workout. Since their academy classes normally started before Tsunade's shift in the hospital, they were used to eat breakfast with only Shizune. Though Tsunade did wake up early to have breakfast with her children once in a while.

Today was one of those whiles. Tsunade was seen coming down from her room at the time of breakfast. The twins were always glad to have their mother during breakfast. But the days when Tsunade woke up early were always special. Today was obviously no exception. She greeted everyone and once she was seated, she addressed her twins, "Today you will be assigned your teams. I know you will, but I still want you to get along with whoever is on your team well. There will probably be no changes once they are made." She said. After getting nods from both of them she continued, "And I hope you have already thought about what I told you yesterday. Jiraiya will probably be here after your placements. As I've said before, you can tell anyone you want about it, but be careful who you trust with such a secret, not everyone will take the news kindly." She advised getting another set of nods.

After breakfast, the twins set out for their team assignments. It was quite early though. The assignments didn't start for another half an hour, but they wanted to be there early.

* * *

Academy training ground

Before the twins even reached their class, they sensed they were not the only ones who had woken up early. Sasuke was already sitting in his usual seat staring out of the window. He turned though when he heard the door to the class sliding open. After some staring between him and Naruto, he asked them to come to the training ground. So here they were.

Once they were in the training ground, Sasuke turned towards Naruto, "Naruto. What do you think makes you strong?" He asked abruptly. The question was vague. It had many answers. One of the obvious ones would be training. Some of others would be drive or need. But Naruto knew what Sasuke was asking about. He knew Sasuke was not looking for an obvious answer like training.

"The desire to protect what you love." Naruto answered certainty. This was drilled into the twins by Jiraiya and Tsunade from very early. But they did not just follow it because it was told to them. They really believed in those words. Stories about their ancestors really made them believe that love is what was worth fighting for.

"I see. Itachi told me…at that time, that hate is what drives you get stronger. He told me to hate him, and grow stronger using that hate." Sasuke said surprising them. That meant they were using opposite ideologies to get stronger. While the twins were training to protect their loved ones, Sasuke trained because he hated his brother and wanted revenge. This posed a question though, a question Sasuke worded, "So which do you think is stronger love or hate?"

Naruto was going to answer however Sasuke interjected, "Words cannot answer that question, I believe. That's why I called you here Naruto. I want to test which path is the right one." He said.

Namiko was more like a bystander here. While Sasuke used to be her friend too, he had more of a connection to her brother than her. Then after the massacre he broke of their friendship. It upset Naruto greatly and she couldn't care about someone who made her Onii-sama upset. So this was between them anyway, she left it to them.

Naruto understood what Sasuke was trying to say. In a battle of ideologies, mere words didn't have any place. Only through actions can one prove which is better. He was waiting for Sasuke to propose a way to do it.

Sasuke had the same idea, "Fight me, Naruto. Fight me seriously and without holding back. Defeat me and prove that love is the better way to gain strength." He proposed. He already knew that Naruto was stronger than him, way stronger. But he still wanted to know, just how much power one could gain when someone was trying to protect something.

Naruto thought about this challenge very little. He knew this was a chance to get through his old friend and stop his path of revenge. He accepted the challenge, "I accept. If this will sway you from the path of revenge, then so be it." He nodded to his sister who backed away to give room to the two boys to fight.

Sasuke took his usual stance with one foot in front of other, his right hand cocked in a fist bent close to his waist and his left hand in front of his face with his first two fingers bent. He was surprised though when Naruto just settled in a kind of a relaxed stance with both arms on his sides.

Both waited for a few moments before running towards each other. Sasuke made a fist with his left hand intending a punch at the same time as Naruto did it with his right. With a battle cry both let their fists fly towards each other. As soon as their fists met, a shockwave seemed to originate from their fists.

Both were still after that. Both for different reasons. Naruto didn't look much affected by Sasuke's punch and was gauging his reaction as well as strength. But Sasuke was not in such condition. Sasuke was hard pressed to hide his wince as well as to not grit his teeth.

 _'What is with this strength? I knew he was holding back, but in none of our previous spars did I feel this much strength in his punch. It almost broke my arm. I'm glad I put some chakra in my punch otherwise it would have definitely broken. Just how much have you been holding back, Naruto?'_ He thought.

Disengaging, they jumped away from each other. Naruto got ready to attack again but Sasuke stopped him, "Enough. It's not needed anymore. I get it. Right now, you are definitely stronger than me. At this moment, it seems your way is better. But I will decide after everything from yesterday is sorted out." He told him. He moved closer to Naruto and extended his hand, "Till then let's work together if we are put into a team."

Naruto took his hands, "Sure thing. I'm glad we were able to become friends again, Sasuke."

Sasuke smirked, "Friends? Hah! Like I would be friends with you, Dobe."

Naruto returned his insult, "Looks whos talking? I'm not the one with an almost broken arm, Teme."

Namiko just shook her head. Still she couldn't help but smile at the interaction. She was glad her brother got his friend back.

* * *

Academy Classroom

After the whole fiasco between the twins and Sasuke, they along with the other new Genins were now sitting in their soon-to-be old classroom. Idle chat was going through all the Genins, but one of the main topics was, 'Who was going to be on whose team?' Normally friends wanted to be in the same team. The classroom was divided among groups of friends. All those coming from clans naturally formed one, except Sasuke who preferred to sit alone. Even Shino was among the group of friends, even if he mostly stayed silent.

Ino being the chatter box she was, was the one doing the most taking, along with the usual fight between her and Sakura about 'Who will be in Sasuke's team?' The rest naturally just sighed.

"Believe me Ino-pig, true love will definitely win. I will be on Sasuke-kun's team." Sakura declared with most certainty.

"You are right on one thing. True love will be victorious. But it won't be you, it is going to be me on Sasuke-kun's team. Just you watch, Forehead." Ino likewise rebutted.

Both butted their heads all the while glaring at each other.

Being already familiar with this kind of behaviour from his family friend, Shikamaru decided to put some effort this time and asked the rest, "Well, aside from who will be on Sasuke's team, what do you people think about the placements?"

Naruto was the one who answered him, "Its hard to guess. There are some patterns that repeat almost every year or in some cases when a condition is met. You should probably know better about that, Shikamaru, since clansmen from yours, Ino's and Chouji's clan are always teamed together."

Shikamaru nodded, "Yes that is normally the case, but…" He looked at Ino still arguing with Sakura and continued with a sigh, "I am hoping it would not be the case this year. I'm all for being teamed with Chouji, but Ino. Only mom is more troublesome than her."

Chouji patted his friend's shoulder and muttered, "I feel you, Shika."

Kiba decided put his own two ryos in the topic, "Well, I know my team is going to be the most badass, because of me of course." He boosted.

He was immediately shot down by the shade wearing bug user, "That will not be the case. Why you ask? Because you are dead last for a reason."

Kiba turned towards him furious, "Whaddya say? Are you picking a fight Shino?" He was again shot down, literally this time, by being smacked on the head by Namiko. Ironically he smashed into his own face imprint on the desk. It was same one he used during the Genin written exams.

Shikamaru on seeing Namiko's behaviour sighed, "Another troublesome one."

Naruto smiled at the Nara clan heir, "I guess, it comes with being a blond." It was unknown if he was aware or not that his own statement applied to him too.

Namiko, wanting to let Hinata speak her mind, urged her, "Who do you want to be in a team with, Hina?" She asked a question she, along with many other, already knew the answer to. But she wanted Hinata to say it.

Hinata's cheeks dusted a bit with red while she stole a few glances of Naruto, "I…um…ano…it would be better if I get teamed up w-with... with any of my friends." She tried to say Naruto, but she just couldn't so she settled with that.

Namiko was disappointed she didn't get the answer she wanted and wanted to urge her further, but was stopped by Iruka walking in the classroom.

Everyone except for the Senju twins, Hinata and Sasuke, were surprised though when they saw only Iruka walking in and no Mizuki.

Iruka walked behind his desk with sheets of paper in hand but before he could say anything one of the students asked, "What happened to Mizuki-sensei, Iruka-sensei?"

Iruka was conflicted to answer that one. Mizuki's betrayal weighed heavily him. He was a long-time friend after all. And since the Forbidden Scroll of Seals was to be kept a secret, the details of his betrayal were also confidential. He looked at Sasuke and then addressed the class, "Mizuki was caught doing some traitorous activities against the village and hence has been apprehended. As of yesterday, he is declared as a traitor to the village. That's all I can tell you."

While the twins, Hinata -she was filled in on the details by the twins- and Sasuke understood the reasons for such secrecy, the others were confused. To them, Mizuki never seemed like a person who would betray the village.

Iruka continued before anyone could ask more, "Let this be a lesson to you. This Ninja world…is cruel. You are now Genins. You won't always encounter nice people when you go out of the village. You have to be ready to defend yourself as well as your teammates not only from physical and mental attacks, but also tricks like deception. I've already told you 'Deception is a Shinobi's greatest weapion'. Unlike Samurai, who fight with honour, Shinobis fight to finish their tasks, they fight to protect what is important to them, but never do Shinobis fight with honour. They cheat, they lie and use any dirty tricks they have to finish what they are tasked to do. " He smiled before continuing once again, "All this will be further taught to you by your Jounin senseis, the elites of this Village. I'm sure most of you know, you will be divided into teams of three which will be leaded by the Jounin senseis. I will now announce the teams as well as your Senseis."

With that he started naming the teams. Meanwhile Naruto was thinking, _'Teams of three. There are 29 graduates. That would mean someone will either be in a team of two or…'_. His thoughts were interrupted when Namiko's name came up.

"Team 7: Sasuke Uchiha, Namiko Senju and Shino Aburame. Your jounin sensei will be Kakashi Hatake." Announced Iruka. This surprised everyone. A team with a Senju and an Uchiha? That was almost unheard of.

But the shock came to the Senju twins harder. They never thought they would be in different teams. Being twins, they had very similar chakra to such extent ,that if not for the different chakra types of Kyuubi sealed inside of them, their chakra would've been the same. And anyone who was knowledgeable on the workings of chakra knew that similar chakras tend to resonate hence strengthening them. That is why they were able to make even a simple C-rank justu strong enough to be like an A-rank one, by performing it together. This was known to the Hokage as well. So why would he separate them, in turn dividing their strength?

Iruka sensed the shock that went through the room. He was surprised as well when he read the teams. He also knew about the workings of chakra and believed that Naruto and Namiko together could make a very strong team. He had stated this to the Hokage. But the Hokage had a different idea, even though it was not fully his own. He ignored the surprised expressions on his former students and continued, "Team 8: Naruto Senju, Sakura Haruno and Kiba Inuzuka. Your team will be leaded by Kurenai Yuhi."

Naruto, though still shocked, expected his placement, somewhat. He knew that the Rookie of the year was normally placed with the dead last to balance the team. But the third member usually was the Kunoichi of the Year, in this case it should have been either his sister or Hinata. Oddly neither of them ended up on his team. He did not have any problem with Sakura, since as long as Sasuke was not around she behaved as a proper Kunoichi, but he would've preferred his sister or Hinata in his team.

Sakura was upset, though she knew beforehand that she would not be in Sasuke's team. Even though she fought with Ino about it, she knew that since she and Sasuke had the same rank, both of them being on the same team would have been neigh impossible. But she had still hoped. Though with Naruto in her team, she could continue her medic studies on the field as well. He was her senpai after all.

Iruka continued, "Team 9 is still in circulation, so Team 10: Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka and Chouji Akimichi. Your sensei will be Asuma Sarutobi."

That brought a loud 'WHAT?' from Ino and a small 'Troublesome!' from Shikamaru. Out of all the teams till now, this one was the least surprising.

Hinata was getting increasingly nervous during all this. First, Namiko and Shino both got teamed up with Sasuke. Then Naruto got teamed up with Sakura and Kiba. All three of her best friends had already been teamed. And now only she and one other remained. That meant she would be in a two man team. She had somehow jinxed herself with her earlier statement.

Others were also thinking the same. Hinata shared her Kunoichi of the Year title with Namiko, so how was it that she ended up in a two man team? Did such a team even exist?

Iruka cleared their confusion though, "Now before I announce the last team, let me introduce you to a new Genin. Sai, please come inside." The door to the room opened to a boy with short, straight black hair, and dark eyes which contrasted with his translucent-looking pale skin. He wore short black-and-grey jacket with red straps over a high-collard, midriff baring shirt, black pants, shinobi sandals and gloves with his index and thumb fingers exposed. He also had a small backpack hanging from his waist. The most striking feature of his though would be the smile on his face. Somehow, even though this was the first time they saw him, his smile seemed off on his face to everyone.

Sai stood beside Iruka and faced the class, "Greetings. My name is Sai." That was all he said with his odd looking smile still in place.

Iruka waited for him to continue but when he didn't, just sweatdropped and said, "R-right. So this is Sai. He is a former root trainee, who was taken into the regular ANBU force after root was shut down. He has been training with them for past three years. So please be good to him." He requested the Genins.

Many held contempt against the root after Danzo was labelled as a traitor and executed. Most of the fully grown root members had to be imprisoned since they were against working for anyone else, some sadly had to be put down. Some young trainees, whose mental conditioning was still not fully complete but were already trained a bit in the ninja ways were taken by the ANBU force to complete their training, without erasing their emotions. While the even younger ones were put in the academy, so that they could go through everything like normal children. Unfortunately there were some like Sai, who had already lost their emotions to the harsh training Danzo put them through.

Iruka then announced the last team, "So Team 11 will be Menba Fuyou, Hinata Hyuuga and Sai. Your jounin sensei will be Anko Mitarashi."

Menba, a shinobi hopeful from a civilian family, clicked his tongue. Not only was he in a team with that Hyuuga weirdo, his other teammate was an emotionless puppet.

When Danzo's crimes were made public, so was his way of training. This was done in order to silence the few families, who had willingly sent their child to Danzo for training and were against his execution. These were the people who thought that the village was biased towards the ninja clans. They thought more power was given to the ninja clans and wanted some piece of that power. Danzo had used this as an opportunity to persuade these families to give their young ninja hopefuls to him to train. He had promised to train them to be as strong as the children from the ninja clans. Obviously he never told them of how he would do it and how those children were never going to return to their families.

Sai did not care much about his placement. After being forced to kill his brother figure, Shin, he had lost almost all of his emotions. Then he was taken out of ROOT and in to regular ANBU, where he was mostly taught things related to being a ninja. While many in the ANBU tried to make him regain some emotions, it was an ongoing process. So he did what anyone would do when they were lacking information. He started reading books. Books on how to read and show emotions along with books on how to make friends.

Sai approached his male teammate and attempted to make friends with him, "Let's get along from now on, dickless." Sadly, his attempt failed.

Everyone was looking at him, mouth gaping, including the supposed 'dickless' himself. His expression however changed into anger as soon as his new nickname registered in his mind.

"What did you call me, freak?" Menba asked angrily.

Sai's smile though never leaved his face, "I read in a book that it was customary to give your friend a nickname based on them. So I called you dickless, dickless. And I see you gave me one as well. Happy to be friends with you." He said extending a hand to him.

Menba slapped the offered hand away, "Keep your nickname to yourself. I don't want to be friends with emotionless puppets."

This was actually quite normal for Sai. He had tried this method many times with the same result. Turning to Hinata, he got an idea. Since speaking truth –according to him- got him rejected, so he will speak the opposite of what he thought of them. Meanwhile Naruto as well as Namiko were getting ready to clobber the guy, if he upset Hinata.

Before he could open his mouth though, Hinata used her brains and stopped him as well as the twins by saying, "Let's be friends from now on, Sai-kun. You can call me Hinata."

Sai was not able to say anything further. He was the one to normally approach someone for friendship. So he was surprised when someone approached him first instead. So he just nodded and took a seat in the back of the room.

Everyone watched him go and sit, still with that creepy smile, then looked at Hinata, who took a breath of relief.

After a few more moments of awkward silence, Iruka broke it, "R-right. So, your jounin senseis will come and pick y-" He was interrupted by a flying black ball like thing that flew in through the window, breaking it. Two thud sounds from two kunai hitting the ceiling were heard. Everyone saw a black banner tied to the kunais with 'Sexy and Single Mitarashi Anko' written on it. Before it was a woman with black-purplish hair, styled in a short, spiky, fanned ponytail. She was wearing a fitted mesh body suit that covered her from her neck down to her thighs over which was a tan overcoat with purple in-seam and a pocket on each side, a dark orange mini-skirt, a dark blue belt, and pale grey shin guards. Her appearance was enough to give men –or young adults in this case- nosebleeds and make more than a few females jealous.

Anko took in the surprised expressions for a few moments before ordering, "Okay, brats from Team 11, meet me at Training grounds 11 in 10 no wait, 11 minutes." She, for some reason, looked proud on her repeated use of 11.

Her order was followed by silence which was broken by the sound of door opening.

"Anko! You barged in early. Again!" Exclaimed a woman walking into the classroom, who was followed by a tall man. The woman was fair skinned. She wore a red mesh armour blouse with only the right sleeve visible. The material resembled bandages with patterns on it similar to those of rose thorns. Her hands and upper thighs were also wrapped in bandages. She had long black untamed hair reaching her upper back, and very unique red eyes with an additional ring in them.

The man following her had brown eyes, short spiky hair and a beard. He wore the standard Konoha ninja uniform, with the sleeves rolled up halfway along with a flak jacket. He also wore a sash that had the kanji for "Fire" marked on it around his waist, a pair of black bangles, and bandages wrapped around the arms of his sleeves.

Iruka, hidden behind the black banner, sweatdropped at the woman. _'Aren't you too?'_ he thought.

"What? They already know in which team they are. So why wait?" Anko argued.

The woman sighed and turned towards the Genins, "Well anyway. I am Kurenai Yuhi. Genins of team 8, please come with me."

The man followed up by saying, "Asuma Sarutobi. Team 10, come forward."

Both the teams came forward, not before Naruto wished both Hinata and Namiko good luck, and stood in front of their sensei. With a nod, both the sensei took their Genins out of the class.

After they left, Anko again turned her attention to the rest, "Well? Whats the hold up? I already said right? Team 11, Training Ground 11, 11 minutes. Now move." And with that she left through the window somehow taking the banner with her. The members of team 11 looked at each other and followed her but used the door instead, not before Namiko wished good luck to Hinata. With a former root member and a guy who barely passed Kiba, she definitely needed it.

Iruka cleared his throat to gain everyone's attention and said, "As I was saying, the other jounin sensei should also arrive shortly, during which you can get to know your teammates even better. Good luck." With that he left the room as well.

Slowly and surely, many jounins came and took their teams with them. After an hour, the only ones to remain in the class were Namiko, Sasuke and Shino.

After another half an hour, Namiko face palmed, _'I should have known this would happen.'._ Indeed she should have. After all, she was familiar with legendary Kakashi Hatake's even more legendary tardiness.

* * *

OMAKE 5

Sasuke was standing in front of a metallic fence gate. There were two things written on it 'Training Ground 44' and 'Do not enter without permission'. While it was officially called Training Ground 44, people who knew about the horrors residing inside it called it 'The Forest of Death'.

But Sasuke didn't know that. He only knew about something he overheard from some ninjas that 'ANBUs use the training ground 44 to train' and since Itachi used to be an ANBU, Sasuke wanted to train in there too. He thought that if this training ground made Itachi strong, then he should see if he could do it too. For all the genius Sasuke had, his mind was sometimes like a child. Probably a result of going through Tsukuyomi at a young age.

Since the gate was closed, Sasuke hopped over the fence instead. For a ninja it was no big deal.

After landing on the other side, Sasuke almost started doubting the Chuunin's words, since aside from larger than normal trees the place didn't look any special to him, but shrugged before starting to walk in deeper into the forest.

After some time though, he started to get a feeling. A feeling of being watched. Putting it off as a paranoia from being in an unknown place, he walked deeper.

He stopped at the sound of some bushes rustling. He turned towards the bush to check it out. Founding nothing wrong he shrugged and started walking again, but this time he kept alert. Proud and arrogant he may be, but he was no fool.

He was now getting a bit anxious. That feeling of being watched had not stopped and the forest was getting darker inside. He was barely able to see any sunlight. A sudden roar stopped his movements. He looked around frantically for the source of it. It sounded close to him. Another rustling caught his attention.

He stared at the bushes hard. It was unnaturally dark that side. He was sweating bullets. He knew something was there and was ready for it. He took some Shuriken and threw it at the darkness hard. The Shuriken did hit something. He knew because of the dull thunk sound they made. But there came no sound that would suggest that anything living had been hit.

There was sudden movement behind him. He turned around fast and came eye to eye with two glowing eyes.

The glowing stopped followed by a scream.

* * *

The scream was heard outside of the forest but sadly, screams from the Forest of Death was a common occurrence, so nobody paid any mind to it.

Sasuke was absent from his team assignment. On investigation his apartment was found empty. Inuzukas were assigned to track his scent. They did. And it led them to Training Ground 44. The Hokage was perplexed. Why would Sasuke's scent be there? His scent trail ended though at some point in the forest. Whatever attacked Sasuke, apparently did not leave anything of him behind. After this conclusion was made by a regular of that forest, Anko, the search was stopped and the last Uchiha was declared dead.

* * *

AN:

Why the hell is Hinata and Namiko not in Naruto's team? Who the heck is Menba Fuyou? Anko, a jounin? You are not pairing Sasuke with Namiko are you? are some of the questions you probably have now. I will answer them one by one.

Q1-Why the hell is Hinata and Namiko not in Naruto's team?

A-Will be explained partly in the next chapter and completely in the 11th.

Q2-Who the heck is Menba Fuyou?

A-Write his name in the way Japanese people do like Fuyou Menba. Put in google translate. And you will get the answer. If you don't get it, I will answer it in the beginning of the 11th chapter.

Q3-Anko, a Jounin?

A-Yes, I know she was a special jounin. But heck I made her a full jounin here. I had first thought of Shizune, but she is already a medic teacher in the academy as well as assistant head Medic in the Konoha hospital. So, I chose Anko.

Q4-You are not pairing Sasuke with Namiko are you?

A-Heck no! That almost made me puke while writing. No let Sakura suffer with that fate. Speaking of fate...

Surprise Question - It is still **NaruHina** right?

A Heck yeah it is! NaruHina for life. NaruHina banzai! That does not necessarily mean she HAS to be in a team with Naruto. So relax. Everything will work out. Everything. I have already planned on when they will get together but I cannot say, since the author giving out spoilers won't look good.

I introduced Sai early because I've made it quite obvious that Danzo is dead and also that the cannon pairings are gonna stay. So I had to bring out Sai. With Namiko's addition I was also missing Genins to team her with.

I answered some questions about team placements beforehand. Do feel free to ask any more if you wish.


	10. Let's get to know each other

Thank you for your reviews.

I have conflicted feelings about this. But thanks to **KamiKageRyuuketsu** , I got the first completely negative review on my fic. Others were all positive criticism and corrections, not that I'm not grateful for those. So first of all I will answer his review.

I normally do not do this but since not everyone looks up the review section, I will copy his review here, " _go kill yourself you pathetic sack of dog shit hinata fan boy trash._ "

 **Well yeah, I am somewhat of a Hinata fanboy. And I understand that you hate her, for whatever reason that may be. But in this hate filled world try to spread love instead of hate. You are free to hate Hinata, me, sliced bread, yourself etcetera etcetera. But keep it to yourself and your fellow haters. I already mentioned it was a NaruHina story, instead of reading it you should have bailed the fuck out of here. You don't even write anything, just follow another guy who also hates Hinata, who also doesn't write anything except comment negatively on other NaruHina stories. I don't know what your existence even means here. If you have time to read the summary of my story and then comment on it on how much you hate me because you hate Hinata, then I've got a news for you. No one, except for similar sad cases like you, gives a fuck about what you think. Save yourself some time and comment when you actually have something valuable to write.**

Sorry about that. I was itching to write that for a week now. I had many more words to say, but those would have been wasted words. Now for people who do matter,

 **orien123 –** Okay first thanks for all the corrections you suggested. You reviewed quite a lot and after the above rant, the word count will increase unnecessarily, so I will keep this as short as possible. Yeah the council thing is overused, but these were some ideas I had way before I thought of writing them down and changing them could have changed the whole story setting, so I had to keep it that way. The rest of the fic though I hope you will find unique. For the same reason, I used 5 Chapters to set the story. Also, my fic is kinda divided into arcs, even though I don't mention them. You can call the first five as The Beginning. The descriptions of all the clothing was difficult for me anyway, but it was done mainly to show Naruto's wardrobe change and for the people who don't actively follow the original Naruto series. Also you are right, I'm from India and not a native English speaker. I am multilingual, most Indians are, so my English is affected by many languages. The prepositions are an effect of my German.

 **Hmason –** Yeah that's true. But its also his duty to inform them of what happened. If you actively keep secrets from the people who help run the village for you, then distrust will start to grow. The shinobi already know that the Kyuubi can't die and even if it does it will re-emerge somewhere else after a few years. Killing the Kyuubi would have made them Jinchuuriki-less and without a Jinchuuriki Danzo would create a lot of problems. So he cannot just up and say that 'Kyuubi died' to those people and they will question what happened to it.

 **TheWateringWizard –** You are one of the readers who has been with me since the day I uploaded the first chapter. First of all thank you for that. Next, Naruto's team weak? Maybe, but remember Sakura is not a useless fangirl in this one. I just haven't shown what she can do. And Kiba is definitely strong. So don't worry team 8 will also be strong. As for Menba Fuyou, just wait and see. Or read.

Okay enough that's 600 words right there, let's get on with the story,

"Speaking/YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

This is a bother really, **Naruto does not belong to me.**

* * *

Chapter 10: Let's get to know each other

Before the team placement - Hokage's Office

An array of Konoha's Elite soldiers, Jounins, was present in the Hokage office. Nine of them to be precise. A few of them were quite famous.

The most famous of them would be the man with gravity defying silver hair. He wore the standard Konoha jounin uniform. His face though was almost completely hidden, save for his right eye, by a mask upto his nose and his forehead protector kept slanted to cover his left eye. That eye was special. It was given to him by his dying friend. It was a Sharingan. Because of it he was called by many monikers like the Copy-cat Ninja or the Ninja with a Thousand Jutsus. His real name though was Kakashi Hatake, widely also known as Kakashi of the Sharingan.

Beside him was another tall but lanky guy. He was Asuma Sarutobi, son of the current Hokage. He was previously affiliated with a group called Guardian Shinobi 12, known for guarding the feudal lord of the Fire country, the Fire Daimyou. He came back after the group was disbanded because of some issues. While he didn't have any fancy eye, his skills with his Trench Knives was nothing to scoff at.

Another noteworthy jounin was Kurenai Yuhi. Even though she was promoted recently, her prowess in the art of Genjutsu was dangerous. Though not on par with Genjutsus casted by the Sharingan, hers were still deadly enough to earn her the rank of jounin.

They were all standing in attendance to know who they were meant to lead. Their Hokage had already briefed them about the teams 1 to 6. He announced the next team, "Team 7 will be led by you Kakashi. Your team will have Sasuke Uchiha, Namiko Senju and Shino Aburame."

The jounin in attendance were shocked to see a team having both an Uchiha and a Senju. That was something that had never happened before. But Kakashi didn't care about that. What he did care about was why weren't Naruto and Namiko put in the same team?

"Hokage-sama if I may, why weren't the Senju twins put in the same team? Being twins, they have amazing co-ordination and would make a great team." Kakashi asked.

"Indeed. What you point is true, Kakashi. But it is for that same reason that they are not together. There is no doubt that they are strong, possibly the strongest among the current batch of Genins and would become even stronger if put together. But that will result in an imbalance of power within the team. You also know that parents and guardians are allowed to provide recommendations for their children's and ward's team placement. This was suggested by their mother Tsunade." The Hokage answered.

Kakashi couldn't argue any more so he nodded. If their mother wanted it like that then there was nothing more he could do about it.

Kurenai was thinking about her own team during all this. She was supposed to lead a team of trackers, so she had guessed it would have an Inuzuka, a Hyuuga and an Aburame as usual. That meant that she was supposed to have Shino in her team. But if he was now in Kakashi's team, then he would have to be replaced by someone that would have been in that team. So Naruto would probably be in her team now along with Hinata and Kiba.

"Now the next team is team 8 to be led by Kurenai. You have Naruto Senju, Sakura Haruno and Kiba Inuzuka in your team." The Hokage announced.

It seemed her guess was wrong. She thought she would get a team of trackers. Naruto had a wide sensing ability, so he was okay. Kiba, she expected anyway. But Sakura, she didn't have any tracking abilities. She was going to ask about it but was stopped by the Hokage, "I know you were supposed to be get a tracker team Kurenai. But this time I have decided to change the pattern of the teams. I will explain after all the teams are announced." Kurenai withheld her curiosity for now.

The Hokage continued, "Team 10, since 9 is already being led by Gai, would be under Asuma. You will have the standard Ino-Shika-Cho team with Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara and Chouji Akimichi."

Asuma nodded, he had expected that team. Kurenai though was confused. All the jounins had been assigned a team and Hinata was still left to be assigned. She had briefly overtook the Hyuuga heiress's training after she wasn't able to perform at the level the elders of her clan expected. She found her to be a very sweet girl albeit very shy. She didn't excel at her clan's fighting style mainly because she didn't like to hurt others. Though that somehow, even Kurenai didn't how, changed after she started training with the Senjus. Shortly after that she was relieved of her duty because of the change Hinata had gone through. She still kept a soft spot for the girl and knowing how she was now, it was impossible for her to fail. She wanted to ask the Hokage about it too but was surprised on the sudden entry of another person.

Anko was someone who liked to be free, but she also had a sense of decorum, a bit at least. And she respected the Third Hokage very much. So she didn't crash through the window like she wanted to, instead just hopped in through it. Her entrance brought surprise to not only Kurenai but to everyone except the Hokage. Unlike them, Anko was not a full jounin. She was instead what was called a Special Jounin, a title given to the people performing tasks special to them and were too strong to be called a Chuunin. Their speciality didn't always lie in fighting. While Anko was a very good fighter, enough to be one of the strongest Kunoichis of Konoha, her speciality lay in Interrogation. She worked at the T&I department of Konoha.

Before the surprised jounins, Hiruzen was rubbing his temple. Anko had a bad habit of barging unannounced as well as earlier than needed. He sighed before saying, "At last, since there is a lack of genin in the current graduating class, Anko will lead team 11 having Sai, Hinata Hyuuga and Menba Fuyou. So on this moment, Anko Mitarashi is promoted to a full Jounin."

The name Sai confused everyone else but Kakashi and Anko. He was still an ANBU when Danzo's ROOT was brought down and young ROOT trainees were taken into regular ANBU for rehabilitation. Sai was one of them. Anko was put in charge of interrogating many former ROOT members to judge their loyalty. She was also told about her team beforehand because just like her last job, this one also came with a special task to be performed.

A task that the Hokage explained, "Sai is the first former ROOT member to be placed in a genin team. As such Anko is given the task of keeping an eye on him. Young Hinata's Byakugan can help her in that regard." After getting a few nods, he continued, "Now regarding the nature of this team arrangements. Unlike the old times where Genins were placed according to their performance in the exams, hence sometimes overspecializing teams, this time I've decided to make teams with mixed specializations. Each team will have Genins that either specialize in one or more of these fields or can be trained to do so: Tracking, Capture, Interrogation, Espionage and Combat, along with at least one Medic. All of this along with the recommendations from their parents or guardians were taken into account to form these teams."

The advantages of this type of arrangement were apparent to the jounins present. Many of them had lost their comrades because there was no medic on their team or because their tracking team didn't have enough power to take down an opponent if needed. By making the teams like these, they wouldn't have to rely on other teams, when tasks other than the one designated to them would be needed to be performed.

But Kurenai wasn't convinced enough to accept Hinata being placed in a team with a possible enemy, even with her friend being the Jounin Sensei. "But Hokage-sama, is it safe to place genins with a former ROOT member?" She was mainly concerned about Hinata but she didn't want to show favouritism in front of the Hokage.

"I understand your concern Kurenai, but Sai has been given a clean chit from the ANBU as well as the T&I department. And Anko is assigned as the team lead for that extra safety measure after all." The Hokage explained.

Kurenai wanted to argue more but was cut off by Anko, "Don't worry~ Kurenai-chan~, I will take care of your girl." While Kurenai was angry on being called upon her favouritism to Hinata, she didn't argue anymore.

"If all of your questions are answered, you are dismissed. Iruka must be ready to announce the teams, I advise you check out your genins." The Hokage said dismissing everyone.

* * *

Present Time – Training Ground 11

Hinata was a nervous wreck. Sitting in front of her jounin sensei and between her two teammates, she felt really uneasy without either Naruto or Namiko. After she started training with them, they had become constant companions to her, unless she was at the Hyuuga Compound. But now, she was with a former ROOT with an odd smile and one of those civilians who hated the ninja clans, technically hated her.

Unaware of the Hyuuga princess's thoughts, Anko started while sitting in front of her new specim… students, "Okay. It goes this way, tell me your names and whatever shinobi skills you have. Some I already know, but lets hear it from you. So you, pale guy, you first." She said pointing at Sai.

Sai, not letting his smile wane, answered, "I do not remember my original name, but I was named Sai before Danzo died. I can use special ink based ninjutsu to make any thing I draw alive." Neither did he have any allegiance to Danzo nor any respect, but he still knew not to call him respectfully.

Anko nodded. She knew most of the things about Sai already, but procedure required it, so she had to ask. "Now you, guy with the sword, your turn." She said pointing at Menba.

Menba scowled at her. He may be a civilian born, but he knew some facts about jounin senseis. One of them was that they tended to do background checks on their genins, so she had to have already known his name. But he complied anyway, "I'm Menba Fuyou. I can use the Academy Jutsus and am very good with my sword." He was the son of a sword smith. His father may have not been a ninja or a samurai, but he did know quite a lot about swords.

Anko nodded again then turned to Hinata, "Now you princess."

Hinata had gained a lot more confidence than she used to have before her meeting with the Senju twins, but apparently lost a majority of it when they weren't with her. She twiddled her fingers, which made Anko frown a little, before speaking up meekly, "Um…I am Hinata Hyuuga. I can…um…use my Byakugan to scout as well as use my clans Taijutsu with it to fight."

Anko was definitely not pleased with her meek answering, _'So this is what the Old man was talking about. She losses her confidence as soon as she is separated from the Senju prince and princess. I can see why he divided them up.'_

But she still had another job to do before she could plan on how to improve her confidence even when the Senjus were not around, "Okay. Like you already know I'm Anko Mitarashi. I used to work at the T&I department, so you can say I specialize in that, but that doesn't mean that I can't fight." She said before grinning wide and continued, "But don't think you are genins just yet. The test you took was merely to weed out the weaker bunch of you. Though your class seems to be better since everyone passed, but that means jackshit to us jounins. All of us have our own ways to test our genins. This test has a 66.6% rate of failure. Unless you pass this, you cannot become official genins."

Reaction to that varied very less. Expect for Sai who still did not let up his smile, both Hinata and Menba had fearful expressions on their faces. Hinata, already low on confidence, was very scared of taking a test such as that. She had confidence in her strength, but not in her resolve. Menba was gritting his teeth. He thought the ninjas were making it harder and harder for civilians to become ninjas. He had enough trouble to pass the genins exams and she said this one would be even harder.

Anko relished in her test subj…students' expression, bar Sai that is. His fake smile creeped even her, her of all people. "So now that you know, I am giving you till tomorrow 7 in the morning to prepare. Be here tomorrow at that time to take your test if you think you have what it takes to be shinobi. If you do not, feel free to bail out now because once you become a shinobi, only death will remain as your exit." She was lying of course. There was nothing saying you cannot quit being a shinobi midway. But she knew that, they didn't. She Shunshined (Body Flicker Jutsu) out before they could say anything.

They were worried, expect Sai of course. It seemed nothing affected him or he was rather skilled at hiding his expressions. Or he did not have any whatsoever, expect for that obviously fake smile.

Menba, not wanting to stay with a clan princess and a former ROOT member, left without saying anything. He didn't have any intention of mingling with them. Hinata saw him leave and turned to Sai. He was still staring at her with that smile. Intending to be a good teammate to at least one of them, she said, "Umm…I guess we should prepare for tomorrow's test. What do you think will it be, Sai-kun?"

Sai looked at her for a few seconds creeping her out before answering, "I don't know what the test will entail." Apparently he was a man of few words.

Her question answered, she was raking her brain to say something to keep the conversation going, before she decided to ask something she probably would regret, "Sai-kun, what um…nickname were you going to give me before?" She was looking around to check if either Naruto or Namiko were around. Somehow she knew the nickname he would give her wouldn't sit well with them.

She knew right. As soon as Sai said it, she was glad no one was around to hear. Sai smiled at her and said, "I was going to call you…"

* * *

Everywhere in different training grounds, with different teams, the same thing was happening. Everyone were introducing themselves. Everyone expect team 7. After waiting for nearly 3 hours, they were just now sitting on the roof of the academy building in front their sensei. As legendary as Kakashi was for his battle prowess, his tardiness was no less legendary. While her other two teammates didn't know that, Namiko knew about it very well. She was very well acquainted to Kakashi's tardiness. That is why whenever they had to call him for anything to their home, they normally gave him a time that was 3 hours earlier then needed. He was a very good friend to the Senjus and almost an older brother figure to the twins. He was the lone surviving student of the Fourth Hokage, the student of their perverted uncle after all. But while she knew about his tardiness, it didn't mean she didn't get annoyed by it.

"Ehh…let's start with some introduction. Tell us your name, likes, dislikes and dreams for future." Kakashi said lazily, nose buried in an orange book.

Namiko wanting to get some revenge on him for showing up late, imitated Kakashi and said, "I'm Kakashi Hatake. I like reading smut written by a perverted old man, I dislike being on time. My dream for the future is to be late for my own funeral." Although none of her audience laughed at her joke, Kakashi did get annoyed a little, but didn't show it.

"Very clever. Let's do that then. You, Aburame, tell me about the brooder next to you." Kakashi ordered Shino. The said brooder scowled at his name, Shino though didn't give any reaction to it except saying, "He is Sasuke Uchiha. His likes are unknown to me. His dislikes are probably fangirls. His dreams, while I may have some idea, I cannot say for sure." Sasuke 'Hnned' at his description. Truth be told even he didn't know what his future goal was anymore.

Kakashi sweatdropped at it though. He wanted to use Namiko's taunt on him in getting to know his genins, but it looked like it backfired. But since he started it, he could not just take it back, so he turned to Sasuke, "Now brooder, you say something about Shino here."

Sasuke frowned. He wanted to open up to others more now, but still hadn't started it yet. And Shino was a mysterious guy anyway. Even his friends didn't know much about him. So he decided to wing it by using what he knew about the Aburame clan, "Shino Aburame. Likes probably bugs, dislikes…insecticides maybe? Dreams, I really don't have any idea."

Kakashi sweatdropped again. Another dead-end. At least Shino showed some expression at that, even though it was just a raised eyebrow. In what sense though, he didn't know. But he knew a lot about the next person and since she introduced him so beautifully, he wanted to return the favour.

"Okay, let's see, Namiko Senju, likes her brother and dislikes whoever hates her brother or whoever her brother hates. Dreams for future hmmm…marrying her brother maybe? But I would suggest against it. It's not appropriate, you know, to think about your brother like that." Kakashi chastised her mockingly. Namiko's brother complex was not a secret to many people. Actually it was not a secret at all. Nobody just pointed it out. But Kakashi decided to take a dig at it.

Namiko was embarrassed at being called upon her admiration towards her brother, but she was not ashamed of doing so in the slightest. So she just pouted and faced away from Kakashi.

Though Kakashi found the childish behaviour cute on the whisker marked face, he still had to inform them about the True Genin test. So he went with it similar to Anko with some of his own spin to it. Before he left though, "Be at training ground 7 early 7 in the morning. I should advise you to skip breakfast otherwise you will end up puking it." He warned before Shunshinning out of there.

Unlike team 11 though, none of them in team 7 was much worried. Mainly because Namiko had somewhat of an idea of what Kakashi's test would be, Sasuke was confident in his skills, and Shino was…well Shino. He, just like Sai, rarely showed any expression on his face. But unlike Sai, he did have expressions. You just had to know him well to spot them.

Both of the boys were preparing to leave before Namiko stopped them, "Before you leave, I must tell you, do not follow his last advice. I know him very well, he is probably playing some kind of trick on us, so take your breakfast tomorrow. I would have told you to come a bit later too, but we can use the time he is late for to make up some strategies, just in case his test needs teamwork, like I think it will." She advised before locating her brother and leaping towards it. Apparently his team meeting was done and was already home. She also wanted to know why she and her brother weren't put in a team together. She had a feeling that her mother had a hand in it.

Sasuke and Shino looked at each other after Namiko's departure and after nodding their agreement, went their own ways.

* * *

Senju Compound

After Namiko met up with Naruto at their house, they started exchanging stories about how their team meeting had gone. Currently Namiko was ranting about how she had to wait for Kakashi to arrive for almost three hours and how they didn't get to know about each other because of his stupid way of getting back at her, which she promptly avoided saying. Naruto, as always, was listening patiently. He knew Namiko liked to tell him about how her day went, even though they were mostly together so there was nothing new to say. And he, like a loving –too much- brother, listened to his sister.

After she was finished she asked, "So Onii-sama, how did your team meeting go?" Naruto started to tell his side of story.

 _Flashback_

 _Training Ground 8_

 _Unlike other…quirky jounins like Anko and Kakashi, Kurenai was rather straightforward. She took her role as a Kunoichi very seriously, not that other ninja's didn't though. And since this was her first genin team, she wanted to come out as a reliable leader. So without any ado she said, "Okay, you already know my name. I'm Kurenai Yuhi. I like sake and I hate sweets, especially cakes. I am a Genjutsu specialist. My dream is to prove that Kunoichi can be as effective as male Shinobis. Now, I want you to one by one introduce yourself the same way. Let's start with the Kunoichi of the team."_

 _Sakura, on being addressed, answered, "I am Sakura Haruno. I like to study medics and…", She giggled with her cheeks red making Kurenai frown and Naruto sigh. Sakura shook her head to concentrate and started again, "I hate Ino-pig and whoever picks on me because of my forehead. My dreams for future, I want…" She squealed with another blush, not being able to say 'a family with Sasuke-kun'. She was going to drift off to her fantasy world but was brought back by Naruto, who yelled, "Sakura! Take this seriously." Sakura squeaked out a 'Hai Senpai' before ducking her head and sitting quietly. Apparently Shizune had trained her well._

 _This was not news to Kurenai. Since Namiko and Naruto were the first students of Tsunade after Shizune, every other student who came after called them Senpai. Sakura was no exception. Though, she obeying Naruto so readily was indeed a news to her._

 _"Okay then, I'll have to work on your daydreaming afterwards. Now since you already spoke, why don't you go Naruto." She said._

 _Naruto nodded, "I am Naruto Senju. I like my family" He was interrupted by a cough from Kiba, a suspicious cough. Kurenai could have sworn it sounded something like 'sis-con'. Naruto though continued like nothing happened, "and ramen. I hate traitors and people who treat their family badly" he was interrupted again by another cough from Kiba, which Kurenai was sure sounded like 'Hyuuga'. This time Naruto got a tick mark on his forehead and glared at Kiba before continuing, "My dream for the future is to be a Hokage or help my sister become one."_

 _Kurenai nodded. A good goal, he had a good chance of accomplishing it too. Kurenai then looked at Kiba, "Okay last one."_

 _Before Kiba could start, Naruto elbowed Sakura and whispered to her, "She said last, you know like 'deadlast'." His whisper though was not quiet enough, intentionally. Kiba growled at him before starting, "Kiba Inuzuka. I like my ninken Akamaru" The white puppy barked his agreement before Kiba continued, "And others dogs" He was interrupted again by Naruto's not-so-quiet whisper, "and dogfood." Unlike Naruto, Kiba could not hold himself and blurted out before he could stop, "Hey they happen to taste very good, you ramen freak." Naruto though was not affected while Sakura was giggling at Naruto's joke. Kurenai herself was trying to hold off a smile and told Kiba seriously, "Enough Kiba, continue." Kiba was shocked that his sensei didn't say anything to Naruto. Indeed Kiba was just getting his payback so Kurenai didn't think of stopping Naruto. Kiba growled again before continuing, "I hate cats" He was again cut off by Naruto saying, "and baths." Sakura couldn't hold herself anymore and fell back laughing while Kiba looked ready to pounce on Naruto. Kurenai stopped him though, "Naruto that is enough, let him finish."_

 _Kiba wanting to get revenge on Naruto said, "My dream is to beat this sis-con to being Hokage." Naruto though didn't react on being called a sis-con. He loved his sister, he didn't see anything wrong with it. They were twins after all. They were, according to what their mother told them, rare identical twins, separated from a single zygote who were of different gender. So technically they were one and the same being. Though that didn't mean he had to love his sister like that, he did it anyway._

 _Kurenai sweatdropped at Kiba's way of announcing his goal. Naruto's sister complex, just like Namiko's brother one, was public knowledge. But it was another thing to call on it openly. Though Naruto didn't seem to be bothered by it, which made Kurenai's sweatdrop bigger. Apparently while she wasn't quirky like some other jounins, her students were instead._

 _She sighed at that thought before she took upon a serious expression again, "Okay enough. Now, you are not genins just yet. There is something called the True Genin Test." She said surprising her prospective students. She then went on explaining the test before dismissing them._

 _Flashback end_

Naruto obviously avoided saying anything about the sister complex. Both of them were aware of what other people thought of their relationship. They did the complex thing just to embarrass the people around them, like a prank. Though their love for each other was also not false. They also knew that both of them had other love interests. But while Naruto's interest in Hinata was quite apparent to everybody except Hinata, Namiko's not so much. Only Naruto, Hinata, Tsunade, Shizune and a few others knew about it. It was funny to watch a proud and composed guy like him turn bashful as soon as he saw Namiko.

Their attention was taken away by door to the house opening. While they could sense chakra from almost half a mile away, they didn't keep this ability always on. Doing so would probably fry their brains with information overload. So they were surprised on the sudden entry of their mother in the living room followed by Shizune as well as someone who they hadn't seen for a long time.

Following Shizune was a tall man with long spikey white hair tied into a pony tail. He was donned in a green short shirt kimono and matching pants, under which he wore mesh armour that was visible at his wrists and ankles. He wore a unique horned forehead protector with the kanji for 'oil' instead of the leaf symbol.

He was not alone though. With him was a young a bit feminine looking boy. He had long black hair, pale skin and large dark-brown eyes. He wore a green haori with white trimmings, and around his waist a brown sash with a fringed trail wrapped around his waist twice, under which was a pinstriped outfit which was apparently a norm in Kirigakure no Sato (Village Hidden in Mist), from where he originally was before Jiraiya found him on the streets. His long hair was gathered in a white bun holder, while two locks of his hair fell loose framing his face, bound with metal hair cuffs at the ends. He did not wear any forehead protector, probably because he was not affiliated to any village.

Naruto and Namiko both were surprised on seeing him. It had been a long time since he was seen in the village again. "Haku!" They both exclaimed.

Haku smiled at both of them, "Long time no see, Naruto-sama, Namiko-sama."

Naruto snapped out his surprise first, "Indeed it has. Three years long I think. Its good to see you again."

He turned to see Namiko's reaction and immediately sweatdropped while Shizune giggled. Namiko was standing there looking dumbfounded with a slight blush on her face. Shizune came up to Naruto and whispered, "She seems more than surprised."

Naruto nodded, "She always was a sucker for long haired feminine looking guys. Haku fits the bill I guess." He grinned before adding, "Too bad he doesn't have white eyes." effectively snapping Namiko out. She glared at her brother and older sister before greeting Haku, "It's nice to see you again, Haku."

Fortunately Haku didn't seem to have caught their byplay and just nodded. Jiraiya decided to butt in then, "And here I come to meet my cute nephew and niece and all they care about is the handsome looking guy. I'm hurt." He made a hurtful expression to go with it.

Before they could answer however Tsunade decided to do it first, "Should I tell them that you are late because you were peeping at the bathhouse again?" Jiraiya immediately turned his attention on Tsunade, "But you already told them. How's that fair?"

"It's okay Ero-oji, we already know you are a super pervert. We knew you would visit the bathhouse first anyways." Namiko said.

Jiraiya fell down crying anime tears while mumbling, "No one respects me." Haku sat beside him, patting him saying, "There there, Jiraiya-sama. I respect you."

* * *

After everyone got their laughs and greetings out of the way, they sat in the living room. They already had an idea of what was to transpire, so Jiraiya decided to cut to the chase. Without any previous humour, he addressed the twins carefully, "Now heres what we are going to do. I have the keys to your seals, which you seem to have figured out Naruto, good work. I will use it to loosen it enough, so that you we will be able to contact the Kyuubi. I want you to talk to it and try and make a deal or if possible make peace with it. It was rampaging the last time it was out in the world, we don't know what its feeling now. So be careful."

This was a news to Tsunade though. She didn't know they were supposed to contact the Kyuubi of all things, "Jiraiya! What the hell are you talking about? Make a deal with the Kyuubi? Don't you think its dangerous to do that?"

Jiraiya turned his attention on Tsunade, "No Hime. It is very important to make peace with it. Loosening the seal is like a double edged sword, while Naruto and Namiko get to use its Chakra, it also gives a way for the Kyuubi to get free. And you should know it better, Bijuus are not mindless creatures, they are sentient beings. So the Kyuubi would know too that loosening the seal will give it a chance to escape. It can make Naruto's and Namiko's life difficult. It will not be able to take direct control of their bodies or anything though, so don't worry. The seal will still be in place." He assured at the end.

Tsunade could not refute his point. Unlike her grandmothers or Kushina's seals, the ones on the twins were very advanced. Advanced enough to allow sharing of chakra between the Jinchuuriki and Bijuu without any harmful effects. But this posed another problem. The Jinchuuriki and Bijuu both had the way to influence the other, since there was a constant connection between them, unlike her grandmother's seal which completely immobilised the Bijuu with no contact between the host and the tenant, unless the host allowed. Therefore if peace was not made with the Kyuubi, he could basically refuse to give chakra, misbalancing their chakra network. So she reluctantly nodded.

Namiko, wanting to relieve her mother, said, "Don't worry, Kaa-chan. I'm sure we can make a deal with the Kyuubi."

Jiraiya shot her down though, "Don't hope too much for it. It has stayed inside you, locked very tightly for 12 years now. I don't think it will be happy about it. I know I wouldn't."

Namiko however gave her uncle a determined nod, "Don't worry. We will do it. Right, Onii-sama?"

Naruto nodded, "Yeah Ero-oji. We will get through him. No matter what. You can bet on it."

Jiraiya smiled at their determination, _'Confident like their father and stubborn like their mother.'_ Then he saw Tsunade smiling similarly, _'Both of them.'_

Jiraiya then clapped his hands, "Okay, now lets get down to business. Both of you show me your seals."

Naruto was the first one to do it. He unzipped his tracksuit and pulled up his mesh armour to show an intricate seal on his belly. The Eight Trigrams Seal (Hakke no Fuin Shikki) had two Four Symbol Seals around a spiral pattern, a norm for seals developed by the Uzumakis.

Jiraiya rolled up his right hand sleeve and moulded some chakra in it. A pattern appeared starting from his palm to his elbow. This was the key to the Yang seal on Naruto. He pressed his palm on the spiral on Naruto's stomach and rotated it counter-clockwise. He did it only slightly though. Even then Naruto felt a surge of energy but at the same time he realised his sensing range had reduced a little.

Jiraiya stepped back and asked, "So how does it feel? Does anything feel wrong to you?"

Naruto took some time to answer it, "I felt a rush of energy when you did it, but now its gone. My sensory range though seems to have reduced. Why is that?"

Tsunade answered that question, "I think because of the excess chakra of the Kyuubi flowing through you, your chakra control has gone down a little and since sensing abilities like yours greatly rely on chakra control, your sensing range has reduced."

Naruto nodded. That seemed to be a plausible theory. He was disappointed because of his loss of control, but he was determined to train it back to how it was.

Namiko was embarrassed to show her seal, mainly because of Haku's presence. She knew no matter how perverted her uncle was, he was professional when it came to work, especially sealing. Naruto was her Onii-sama, she didn't have any problem in showing him the seal. He has done so before anyway, when they became curious about the seals on them.

Jiraiya understood her problem and told Haku to wait outside. Naruto went with him to keep him company.

After both left, though Namiko wanted her Onii-sama to stay, Jiraiya nodded to Namiko. She untied her obi to open her kimono-blouse enough to show her seal. Her seal, to any amateur person, would look exactly the same as Naruto's. But to seal masters like Naruto and Jiraiya, it held some small differences. Differences that Namiko now knew was because of the different natures of Kyuubi's chakra sealed inside them.

Jiraiya this time rolled up his left meshed sleeve and moulded chakra. Another similar seal to the one on his right hand showed up. He repeated the same procedure he did on Naruto. Just like Naruto, Namiko also went through some lose in her sensory range.

After Namiko was properly dressed again, Naruto and Haku were called back in the room. Both the twins were told to sit in a cross-legged position on the ground and were being given instructions on how to contact the Kyuubi by Jiraiya.

* * *

Inside a dark place, a single red eye opened to show a slitted pupil. The head on which the eye was, rose a little. The head was not human-like, instead it resembled more of an animal's, a canine or a vulpine. It had suddenly felt like some weight was lifted off it, which disturbed its sleep. **_'Those humans have finally decided to contact me I see.'_**

* * *

AN:

Somehow it has become like this, that there is no chance for an Omake in every alternate chapter because I would rather avoid killing Sasuke by some boring method like execution etc. Sorry for that. But this chapter is already long, so its better this way, I think.

You can take the Hokage's words about the team placements as my words. The teams are divided depending upon these: Tracking, Capturing, T&I, Combat, Espionage with a medic in the team. There is also Planning and Strategy, but that is something that would come after the teams are finalized.

I'm trying to give all the characters their own personalities, some similar to canon, some different and some both. I hope I am at least not doing a bad job at it.

So Ero-sennin re-enters as Ero-oji but he has a boy from Kiri with him. How? And a gigantic mass of chakra, two of them actually, has awakened and is ready to enter the story, consciously this time. You all are probably tired of all these mysteries I have kept unexplained, Danzo dying, Tsunade's first child and now Haku. But you must understand, all will have to be explained in their own time. And I WILL explain them. Just when the time is right, or sometimes over the course of the story. I believe that keeps it interesting.

And no, Haku is not Namiko's ship. But I brought him in since I think he (I truly believe it was a She though.) was a very important character in the Naruto series. Important enough to be reincarnated. He gave Naruto his nindo. And I thought Naruto bringing him back alive after the wave arc was a bit impractical and overused. This is fanfic, so I bent the circumstances a little to introduce him early and differently because I still haven't read a fanfic with Haku shown as anything other than Zabuza's partner.

What do you think Sai would have nicknamed Hinata in the canon? if he has not already. (I don't think he has) And what nickname would he give her in this fic? Tell me about it as well as the chapter in the reviews. Till next chapter


	11. Failed How?

Thank you for your reviews and follow ups.

Okay, I said I will explain the name 'Fuyou Menba' at the start of this chapter but I will let you guess through this chapter and tell you at the end Author's Notes.

Also, I had frankly and totally forgotten about Akamaru in the previous chapter, I'm sorry for that. I did introduce him in the 6th chapter. So I will try my best not to do it again.

Now, to answer some reviews,

 **Dudemil :** Thank you very much. And I'm sorry for the Omakes but that is just how it is. You can skip the Omake on this one too.

 **GunBlade2018 :** 'Blinkers' is a nice nickname, but it sounds like something Anko would give. Sai's nicknames are more derogatory or they are opposite to what he thinks of them. Good one though. May try and use it if such character came up.

 **Sonicprophet :** I actually researched it first before adding that part. According to Wikipedia™ ( wiki/Twin under Genetic and epigenetic similarity) "Monozygotic twins are genetically nearly identical and they are always the same sex unless there has been a mutation during development." So it is not entirely impossible. And even if it was, what use is writing a fiction, if it has play by the rules of the real world? I mean how did an entire race consisting of women reproduce? ( _Wonder Woman *Not mine either by the way, just in case someone decides to sue me*_ )

Now lets start the chapter,

"Speaking/YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

And no I have still not become rich enough to buy it, so **Naruto is still not mine.**

* * *

Chapter 11: Failed!? How?

Training Ground 11

At early 7 in the morning, three genin hopefuls were standing in attendance, not together though. The lone female of squad 11 was sitting on a log nervously twiddling her fingers and looking at her teammates. One of the said teammates sat cross-legged on the ground a few distance away from the girl, drawing something on a scroll. The last was also the only one who looked like he could drop asleep anytime, where the other two looked quite fresh. Hyuugas had a strict training schedule as well as morning routine, even the heiress was not exempt from that. The ROOT as well as regular ANBU were required to wake up at early hours and start their duties, so neither was Sai sleepy. Menba, coming from a civilian family, was much more relaxed in that sense and was not used to wake up this early in the morning.

It had already been sometime everyone, except for their sensei, had arrived at the training ground. Hinata wanted to form some kind of plan for their test, so she had approached both her teammates for it. But while Sai agreed to do so, Menba outright refused to take any help from a person belonging to any ninja clans, especially the heiress and refused to work with someone he considered a puppet. So now she was waiting for her sensei to arrive.

Arrive she did, surprisingly in a normal leaf Shunshin. She ordered immediately, "Alright! Line up maggots!" The 'maggots' immediately did what they were told. Obviously no one was happy on being called maggots, even Sai. Also obviously Anko didn't care, "Okay, here's the deal. There are three clones of me in the forest behind me. Two of them have scrolls on them with a clue for you to pass this test. You have to get at least one scroll to pass. You have till afternoon to get a scroll. Now scram!" She explained before exploding in tons of small snakes. Snakes that exploded towards the genin who frantically dodged them. After getting free of the snakes, all three of them jumped into the forest, unfortunately separately.

* * *

Hinata landed on a tree branch after entering the forest. She knew she had the best chance of locating her sensei. Her Byakugan was a great asset for that. But she was not confident that she could subdue her. She had done some research on her sensei on the previous day. Apparently she used to be an apprentice of the now missing snake Sannin, Orochimaru, before she was discarded by him. She was adept in using snake based ninjutsu, like she just demonstrated. Even her Taijutsu revolved around the flexibility of snakes. So Hinata knew she would be very difficult to take down. This was not counting the fact that she was a Jounin with years of experience.

The fact that there were only two scrolls was not lost on the Hyuuga either. But that would mean only two of them would pass. That deviated from what Iruka-sensei had told them. Genins were supposed to be placed in a team of three led by a Jounin. She was planning on asking one of her teammates for help, but first thought of engaging her sensei and maybe try and figure out what the test's true purpose was.

She whispered a small 'Byakugan'. Veins bulged around her temple, a tell-tale sign of an activated Byakugan. She looked around a bit, zoomed in and out of her vision trying to locate one of her sensei's clones. She found one perched on the tree branched similar to herself and leapt towards her.

She stopped at a branch away from the clone, looking for a way to ambush her and get her to even ground. Gentle fist was a Taijutsu style more efficient when done on even ground. She was careful enough not to draw any attention to her.

Anko's clone, or maybe Anko herself, was already aware of the surveillance being done on her. She pretended to not notice it. She had snakes everywhere in the forest to watch her genin's movements. The Hyuuga was doing a fairly good job in hiding herself, for a genin. So she was not surprised on the entry of the young Hyuuga and successfully dodged the two finger jab to her mid-section and landed on the ground below.

Hinata, her job done, landed on the ground in front of the clone and immediately dropped into a basic Gentle fist stance, while her sensei simply stood with one of her hands on her hip.

Anko grinned at the battle ready Hyuuga, "I am surprised. Given your nature, I thought you would definitely follow one of your teammates instead of attacking alone. Well, lets see what you can do then." She said but did not change her stance, mocking the Hyuuga.

Hinata was not someone who could be mocked like that though. While she came from a clan filled with proud, borderline arrogant people, she was different. Instead of automatically believing that the Gentle fist was enough to take on any opponent, she was logical enough to assess her enemy's strength first. But to do so she had to attack. So she did.

She sped towards her sensei, at a speed that frankly surprised Anko, and aimed to close a Chakra Point in her leg to disable her. Anko recovered from her surprise just fast enough to bend her leg back to avoid the jab. Hinata though surprised her again, when she lashed out at the other leg with a kick. Her kick just grazed Anko's leg before the clone leapt back to make some space. Hinata didn't follow her this time and moved back into her initial stance.

Anko was very much surprised when she found her right leg almost numb and leaning more on her left one. _'She kicked! And she actually numbed my leg by it. But how? Gentle fist does not have kicks. Moreover her demeanour seemed to have done a complete 180. There is no nervousness on her face or in her stance at all.'_

Anko didn't let her surprise show though. She just grinned at the Hyuuga, "Hinata Hyuuga, the strongest Hyuuga of current generation. So that's why you are called that. You actually incorporated kicks into Gentle fist and somehow are able to close chakra points with it. You effectively increased your range at the same time you have a surprise element for people who know about traditional Gentle Fist. You are also quite confident now, unlike before." She grinned wider, "Training with your boyfriend really helped you, I guess."

That statement did its work. Hinata blushed upon being called on her crush. While it was true she got stronger by training with Naruto and Namiko, she was still not experienced enough to avoid reacting to such dirty distractive tactics. Anko was, so she used it. Used it well. She quickly closed the distance between them and leg swept low to trip Hinata. Hinata, in a show of amazing reflexes, jumped up to avoid it, but Anko's experienced trumped here. As soon as Hinata jumped to avoid the leg sweep, Anko came up with an uppercut, successfully hitting Hinata on her chin to send her flying. Hinata back-flipped mid-air and righted herself before landing directly in her stance, but by that time Anko was already out of her telescopic sight.

Hinata was unable to locate that clone anywhere. Either it Shunshined far outside of the visual range of her Byakugan or it had dispelled itself. But that would mean that it did not have a scroll. She berated herself for not checking that before. She wanted to curse but even in her thoughts she was embarrassed to do so. She searched for a bit more before locating Sai, who was apparently fighting his own clone, or maybe it was the original. Even for Byakugan, it was difficult to tell apart Shadow Clones from the original. She would know, it was one the favourite justus of her favourite pair of twins after all. Even so, she started to move towards Sai, to either assist in his fight or to tell him that his clone also didn't have any scroll on it.

* * *

In another part of the forest, the pale former ROOT was fighting against his previous Interrogator. Unlike other Shinobi who were harsh against former ROOT members, Anko, opposite to her personality, was kind to them. Mainly because she knew the pain of being distrusted by your comrades only because you were previously affiliated with a traitor. And Danzo, no matter what he did, loved the village and did everything for the good of Konoha, unlike her sensei. But that also didn't mean she went easy on the interrogations, she was unaware of her sensei's doing but the ROOT members weren't. They willingly went against the Hokage and sided with Danzo, and that was just not acceptable.

But Sai didn't let that kindness affect his fight. In ROOT as well as ANBU, it was taught to never underestimate your opponent. And Anko being one of the strongest Kunoichis of the village was definitely not to be underestimated. He was currently dodging some snakes Anko had summoned, slicing a few with his Tanto (Short Sword). Once the last snake was dealt with, he took out a scroll from his backpack. It had a detachable drawing brush in it. He drew something on the scroll then made a hand sign and said, "Ninja art: Super Beat Scroll". The drawings on the scroll came alive. There were some snakes similar to the ones Anko summoned. The snakes went towards Anko, probably in order to subdue her, while Sai started drawing on the scroll again.

Anko was watching Sai do all this. She was obviously not fighting seriously. It was not the main part of the test after all. She watched as small snakes looking like drawings came out of the scroll. Few of them directly came at her while a few hung back. She was fighting of some of the snakes when she saw Sai hop on what looked like a bird made of ink. It flew higher in the air. _'So he realised I'm more of a close range fighter and is trying to keep some distance. Clever.'_ She thought.

Sai was indeed making some distance between him and Anko. He was a long range fighter and though he was fairly good with his Tanto, Anko's snakes made it really difficult to fight her, especially the ones that came out of her sleeves. He also needed time to draw the characters on the scroll. Time that the distance provided. He again started scribbling on the scroll and this time summoned two tigers to fight against Anko.

Anko was just finished with the ink snakes when she was pounced by an ink tiger. He was trying to keep her occupied then find a way to subdue her. And his ink beasts were doing a good job at it, Anko had to agree. She could have easily broke through those and moved in on Sai, but he being airborne would allow him to get out of reach easily.

Anko tried to do so anyway. She ducked through another prancing tiger and threw a punch at Sai, "Striking Shadow Snake" she yelled. Many snakes emerged from her coat sleeve and sped towards Sai. Predictably Sai's ink bird flew higher to avoid the snakes, but Anko wasn't a Jounin for nothing. All of the snake's mouths opened and launched kunais at him. Sai showed his ANBU training by hitting the kunais away with his Tanto, but one went through the ink bird, dispelling it. Sai fortunately jumped away and landed safely on the ground.

Anko not wanting to give him time to recover tried to attack him but had to dodge a Gentle fist strike. Anko was truly surprised as well as glad at Hinata's arrival. At least someone had gotten the idea to work together in a test that was rigged to make them work against each other. At least she hoped so.

Hinata stood in her Gentle fist stance in front of Sai. He also had his sword in his hand ready to confront Anko at short range. Hinata though had other plans, "Sai-kun, there is no meaning in fighting her, she doesn't have a scroll. We should retreat and form a plan." She suggested. Sai nodded his head. His ANBU training dictated 'The only way to defeat an opponent stronger than you is to work together with your teammates.' This was true for ROOT as well as regular ANBU.

Even though Sai was standing behind her, Hinata's Byakugan allowed her to see him nod. Now she just had to plan a way to retreat. She had seen Sai using those ink creatures with her Byakugan. They seemed to be the only way to distract Anko long enough for them to retreat.

Hinata was going to tell this to Sai but was interrupted by Anko, "Don't blurt out your plans in front of your enemy like that. There is no way they will allow you to execute them if they know what your plan is." She grinned before adding, "Just like me." She launched herself at them as soon as she finished.

Hinata knowing Sai was weaker at close range, engaged Anko herself. Anko limited herself to match Hinata while fighting against her Gentle Fist. She had to constantly up her level though. The Hyuuga clan's Taijutsu was formidable to begin with, adding kicks to them made it harder to fight her. Hinata's reaction time as well as speed was also nothing to scoff at. While she was forced to stay on the defensive, she also didn't let Anko strike her at all. Anko naturally had an upper hand in the fight because of her experience as well as her size. But she was still unprepared for another Hinata that attacked her legs, this time properly numbing them making her fall to the ground.

Both the Hinatas jumped back as soon as her work was done. Both of them were surprised though when snakes made of ink crawled up to Anko's fallen form and tied themselves up around her legs. Hinata, both of them, looked towards Sai who nodded at her. They jumped away from the Anko clone, into the thick of the forest.

Anko was definitely surprised by the Hyuuga's use of Shadow Clone Jutsu. She didn't know how such a young girl could use such a chakra taxing jutsu. She did have an idea from where she could have learned it from though. She was friends with people known for notorious use of that jutsu. But using it was a completely different story. She grinned after she came to her senses. _'At least they are working together. Now just the third one remains.'_ She thought before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

* * *

Menba was panting heavily, supporting himself with his sword. He had gone through great trouble to find one Anko clone, who was leisurely chewing on some dangos. He didn't wait for her to finish though. A smart choice. He ran straight at her while unsheathing his sword. Not a smart choice. He was actually surprised when Anko stopped his sword swing with a mere dango skewer. In Menba's defence, the skewer was actually a senbon. The fight just went downhill from there and stopped at Menba left panting and exhausted.

Anko huffed at his appearance. She had expected more from his swordsmanship when he said he was good with sword. She was using a kunai for god's sake! "C'mon, that's it? You said you were good with the sword. I only saw you swinging it blindly. I'm only using a kunai you know. Why don't you go ask for help?" Anko said trying to make him work with his teammates. She had been telling him things like that during the whole fight but he just, "Shut up! I don't need help from a clan princess. And definitely not from a puppet." said that.

Anko sighed. She had already gotten the memories from her clones. She really wanted to lead the Hyuuga heiress. She saw a rebel in her when she displayed the changes she had made to the Gentle Fist, obviously against the Hyuuga Elders' wishes. Sai was not much of an interesting person with his lack of expression expect for that fake smile. But Anko saw a kin in him because of their previous affiliation to traitors. But to pass a team, it had to show teamwork or at least a desire to work together. Menba seemed to hate both of his teammate with passion though. Anko already knew about many people who hated the ninja clans. But she couldn't figure out why he hated Sai so much. Sure he was a former ROOT, but what did Menba had to hate him for it.

Anko had to ask, "You know, I understand you hate ninja clans and people from them. Many people do. But why do you hate Sai so much? Other than being from ROOT, I don't think he has done anything to you. _'Except for calling you dickless, that is'_ " She added the last part in her thoughts.

Menba clenched his sword's handle harder, "Nothing to hate you say. I HAVE EVERY REASON TO HATE ROOT! It took my elder brother from me. That damn Danzo came to my house when I was young. He promised he would train my brother to become stronger than those people from the ninja clan. My father agreed. But we never saw him again. Until Danzo was declared traitor that is. I saw him, fighting the ANBU. But he was defeated. I don't know what happened then. My parents were called during his interrogation, but he refused to accept that he was related to them. He even denied his real name. He said he was an orphan found by Danzo-sama and will only serve him. He was sent to Houzuki Castle afterwards. So you see, I hate ROOT because they made a puppet out of my brother."

Anko was confused. Since many of the former ROOT operatives' families were called to persuade them to join the regular forces, it was difficult to keep track of everyone. And just like he said, those people didn't even know their real name anymore, it was hard for her to remember who his brother was. But it was no use in remembering him anyway, once anyone entered the 'Blood Prison', they almost never got out. But what Anko was confused about however was why did he hate Sai? She understood his hate for ROOT, but what did Sai have anything to do with it?

"I get it that you hate ROOT. But Sai had nothing to do with it. Why hate him?" She asked.

Menba scowled, "How did he get to stay in the village? Why was my brother sent to the prison and not him? He is as much of a puppet as my brother had become. So why he did remain?"

Anko sweatdropped. Another illogical hater. She was really cursed with such people. He hated Sai just because he remained and his brother was imprisoned? Really? She didn't explain this to him though. She had experience with people like him. No matter how much you explain them, they refused to see reason whatsoever.

Anko moved towards him intending to knock him out but was stopped by a flying kunai courtesy of Sai. Both Sai and Hinata landed beside Menba to help him. Menba though didn't want any of it, "What the hell are you doing? Don't come in my way. That is my scroll. I won't let you take it." He lashed out with his sword at Sai. Sai blocked it with his Tanto.

Hinata tried to talk to him, "Please Menba-kun. We are here to help you. That clone doesn't have-" She was cut off by him, "Shut up! I know how you clan people work. You are here to steal my scroll. That's what you do, you steal others credits." Hinata was taken aback by it. She didn't know he hated her this much. His words turned off whatever switch was turned on to make her confident. She stepped back, pressing her index fingers she mumbled a quiet 'Sorry'.

Sai came to Hinata's defence, "We have to work together. Defeating a foe like Anko-sensei is not possible without it."

Menba turned at him, "Shut up, you damn puppet! What? Your strings are in the Hyuuga's hands now?"

Anko was watching the scene patiently. She was hoping they would be able to convince him to work together. This team was her only way to be recognised as a full jounin. And like she said before she wanted to teach at least two of them. She could probably change Menba a bit too, but only if he agreed to work together today. It didn't look like it though. With Hinata back in her shy self and Sai's no real social skills, it was impossible to sway him.

Anko stopped them before Menba stopped with words and started using his hands or worse sword, "Okay enough. I am giving you a last chance. I have a scroll with me." She took out a scroll from apparently nowhere. Hinata was shocked on seeing it. She had checked her with her Byakugan, there was no scroll on her body. "Take it from me and you pass." She added.

Menba not wanting to fail, again charged straight at her. Sai followed him to assist. Menba slashed at Anko's arm, which was holding the scroll. But because of his exhaustion he not only missed but overreached himself, which Anko took advantage of. She side-stepped his swing and grabbed his wrist with her other another hand and threw him over her.

Sai used this distraction to go for the scroll but was kicked by Anko with an amazing show of flexibility.

Hinata stood by helplessly watching her teammates being picked apart by her may-not-be-for-longer sensei. She had figured out the true purpose of this test. Her sensei had hinted on it a few times. She wanted them to work together as a team. But with Menba hating both her and Sai, it was nearly impossible. He was also already exhausted. Using him in a plan would be difficult. The only thing he would now be capable of was to be a decoy, which Hinata knew wouldn't sit well with him.

Anko watched as Hinata stood there looking at her teammates. She knew she had figured out what the test was. Sai probably had too. She was waiting for her to do something. Anything that may convince her to pass this team. But after some time she sighed. Menba didn't have any energy left. He would not be able to fight anymore anyway.

"Stop. This test is over." She announced. "Gather up front."

Menba supported himself with his sword and limped forward. He stood away from both of his teammate.

Anko looked at her would-have-been students angrily. This was a chance to prove herself. This was a chance to pass her techniques to someone. To at last teach someone. And one guy blew it. So she was definitely angry.

"Hinata and Sai, I'm sorry but you have to attend the academy again. You fail." She said, a bit sadly.

Menba suddenly got some hope in him. Maybe he had lasted long enough to impress his sensei and passed the test. He looked smugly at this 'teammates'.

Anko wiped that look off his face though, "Menba Fuyou, you don't have to bother with the academy anymore. I will report the Hokage to drop you from the Shinobi program all together. You fail terribly."

Menba was shocked, but he was more furious, "What? Why?" He thought that the clan heiress and her puppet were being shown favouritism, "Is it because I'm not from a clan? Or I'm not trained to be an emotionless doll?"

Anko was tired of this, "Listen you piece of shit! I'm tired of you crying all the time on how you are not from a clan and all. News flash! I'm not from a clan either, but I am a Jounin now, aren't I? You failed because you refused to work together with your teammates. Did you think you could work alone all throughout your ninja career? Or were you hoping to refuse to work with any former ROOT or clan ninja whenever you were supposed to? It doesn't work like that chummy. We work to protect the Leaf village and its people. People like you and your parents. And we do it by working together, not working alone." She said unintentionally leaking her killing intent, making Menba nervous. Even Sai was sweating, with his smile still on his face.

Menba was gritting his teeth. Who was she to lecture him? He knew she was trained by Orochimaru. No one else in the village had snake based ninjutsu. But he didn't say it. No matter who she was, she was strong and she was a jounin. There was nothing he could say to her. So he turned and limped towards his home.

Anko and Sai watched him go. Hinata though didn't. Her mind was stuck on two words 'You fail'. She was on the verge of tears. She had worked very hard to become as strong as she was now. If not for Naruto and Namiko, she would have stopped trying a long time ago and would have been sealed in favour of her sister. Anko-sensei said to go back to the academy. But the Hyuuga elders would not allow it. They barely allowed the 'bastardization' of their pure and mighty Gentle fist. If they were told that she failed, they would seal her and probably marry her off to some noble.

After Menba was out of sight, Anko turned her attention on the remaining two and immediately cursed him again. Hinata was barely holding herself together. She already lost a lot of her composure when she was separated from the Senju twins and now failing because of some unreasonable guy was getting to her. Anko also knew how strict the Hyuuga clan was. That was why she was surprised when she saw Hinata use kicks in her Gentle fist. She probably had to go through a lot for that alone. A failure like this could cause her to be sealed and how Anko hated seals like that. She was tainted by one after all.

She didn't want to let go of the team. So she said, "Listen, you both did very well. Frankly I want to pass you two but protocol does not allow it. But I will try to talk to the Hokage and see if we have any reserve Genin that we can form a team with. So Hinata," Hinata raised her head on being addressed, after which Anko continued, "I advise you to not inform the Hyuuga council. I know they would give you more than hell if you told them you failed." She smirked before continuing again, "Why don't you crash at your boyfriend's today?"

That brought a blush as well as a smile on Hinata's face. She bowed to her sensei, "Thank you very much, Sensei. But I would be Oka-" Anko cut her off, "No you won't. Believe me, I will do something about this. Sai, you will be in the team too, but since you are not a genin just now, you are still an ANBU trainee. So I give you a mission. Stay with Hinata till she meets up with her boyf- with Naruto. You can go home after that." Sai nodded. He was habituated in taking orders from his superiors.

Hinata wanted to argue but was stopped by Anko's glare, so she nodded. Anko nodded back before leaving to report to the Hokage. This report was going to be interesting.

* * *

Hokage's Office

The jounin senseis were again standing in front their leader in order to report the status of each of their teams, even Kakashi. The jounin who was assigned Team 6 was currently reporting about how his team failed, similar to the jounin senseis of teams 1 to 5.

"And that's why Team 6 fails." The jounin of former Team 6 concluded.

The Hokage nodded. Truth be told he never expects more than two teams from a graduating class to pass. It was no surprise the first six teams failed. He motioned Kakashi to step forward to give his report.

Kakashi did so, "Team 7 Passed." His statement brought surprise to many. He had a track record of failing every team he was assigned. But the Hokage was not surprised. This time his team was different. This time it had a girl who he considered as a sister in it. But the Hokage didn't want to see favouritism in the team, so he urged Kakashi to continue.

"Just like every time, I conducted the bell test to test their teamwork. They were supposed to take one of the two bells each to pass the test. Surprisingly it was Sasuke who urged everyone to work together. Considering the loner attitude he used to have, it was an improvement. Namiko also looked like she already had an idea about the true purpose of the test, so she went along with Sasuke's plan and convinced Shino to do so as well. Seeing as how logical those from Aburame clan are, it probably didn't take much for him to agree. They worked together to try and get a bell from me. They actually managed to take one. Sasuke and Namiko went on offensive to distract me with a clone of Shino, a bug clone. That clone dispersed and was able to plant a bug or two on me, who chewed off a bell from my belt. Seeing as they had achieved half of their mission as well as were working together, I passed them." Kakashi elaborated.

Hiruzen nodded. While Namiko already knowing the true purpose of the test may have been a deciding factor in their passing it, Sasuke working with his teammates was a good development. He just hoped the imminent meeting with Itachi goes well enough for him to keep developing like that. He then motioned Kurenai to report.

Kurenai smiled, "Team 8 Passed." No one was surprised this time, so she continued, "Since there were two medics in my team and Kiba had Akamaru, I tested them on co-ordination and teamwork instead of Genjutsu." Well that surprised a few. Since Kurenai was a Genjutsu specialist, they thought she would test them on that. "I tasked them to find two sealing tags I hid in the forest. Naruto showed impressive leadership skills along with planning. He quickly asked Kiba to go with Sakura and a Shadow Clone of his, to look for one tag, while he himself went with Akamaru to find another. The tags were hidden by a Genjutsu which was easily dispelled by Naruto and Sakura. The trick was to take of the tags at the same time. Naruto though showed his genius by using Shadow Clone's ability to transfer memories and used it to time it correctly. So they passed." Everyone sweatdropped. _'She used Genjutsu anyway.'_ was what they thought.

Hiruzen coughed to bring attention back to him, "I'm glad to hear both teams passed. Now lets move on. Asuma you are next."

Asuma nodded, "Team 10 Passed." Again no surprise there. The Ino-Shika-Cho's teamwork was very well known and they continued this tradition through generations. The only problem would be the lethargic Nara clan attitude, "My test was for them to simply defeat and immobilise me. Shikamaru didn't seem much motivated and Chouji was afraid to hurt me, but Ino's bossy attitude got them working anyway and they were able to stop me from moving. While I was only able to see Shikamaru's and Chouji's skills since Ino was just bossing them around, at least she emerged as a good motivator for them." Nara clan's avoidance to anything that was 'Troublesome' was no less prominent in the heir it seemed.

Hiruzen nodded at his son and turned his attention to Anko, who was now sweating nervously. The old Hokage sensed Anko's nervousness. It didn't sit well with him, "Now for the last team, Anko?"

Anko was looking for some words to present the news mildly, but resigned to her fate, "Team 11…Failed."

If it was not for his receding hairline, the Hokage's eyebrows could have hid themselves in his hair. Similar shock was going through the rest of them, especially Kurenai.

The Hokage composed himself to ask, "How?"

Anko couldn't take it anymore, "It was that Civilian brat. He wouldn't work with any of them. He hates both the ninja clans and the ROOT, by extension the princess and Sai. And…." She continued ranting about how one guy messed up the whole team.

Sadly her rant didn't exactly answer the Hokage's question, so he asked again, "Stop Anko. Tell me from the beginning what happened." Anko stopped her rant, took a deep breath and did as asked.

After she was done explaining, the Hokage sat back taking everything in. He straightened before saying, "This is bad. Hiashi won't take it nicely that his daughter failed to be a genin even after showing such prowess just because of a clan-hater. Hinata probably was on a knife's edge with the Hyuuga Elders after she changed the Gentle Fist style as you mentioned. And the Hyuugas aside, I do not want to let this kind of talent waste six more months in the academy for no reason."

Anko brightened at that. She rubbed the back of her head and said, "Actually, I kinda told them I would get a replacement genin to complete the team. So…can I?" She used an S-rank Jutsu with that question to put more weight to it. The Puppy Dog Eyes Jutsu.

The Hokage was not affected by it though, "I want to do just that." He said making Anko grin. But it was wiped off, "But we do not have any free genin to put on the team."

Anko was dejected. She really wanted to lead the team. She along with everyone else was given hope by Jiraiya, who barged in through the window and said, "I think I can help you with that problem."

* * *

OMAKE 6

Sasuke Uchiha, Namiko Senju and Shino Aburame were all standing in front of their Jounin Sensei, Kakashi Hatake, who had just arrived, 3 hours late. They were waiting on Kakashi to explain the test they were supposed to take.

Kakashi took out two bells from his kunai pouch and told them, "You have to take these bells from me before afternoon." He then took out an alarm clock and set it on one of the wooden stumps beside him. "Whoever takes a bell passes." He added.

"But sensei there are only two bells and there are three of us." Namiko pointed out.

"Correct. So obviously only tw- " Kakashi was cut off by Sasuke, "Don't bother I'm going to get both of them. You two should give up now, I'm the only one who deserves to pass."

Namiko glared at him while Shino didn't give any outward expression except for a raised eyebrow. He seemed to be limited to that single gesture. Kakashi was already seeing how his test would go.

"Well you heard him. I advise you stop him before he does or I would have no choice to fail you. Before you start I should tell you to come at me with intent to kill otherwise you will never get a bell." Kakashi warned before continuing, "Okay, Start!"

Namiko and Shino knew fighting him head on who be suicide, so they immediately scattered. Sasuke though stood there, arms crossed looking smug.

Kakashi sweatdropped, "You know, for a supposed prodigy, you are light in head."

Sasuke did not lose his smug expression though, "You should stop with the act now and give me the bells. You know you can't fail me, right?"

"Hmmm…and why is that?" Kakashi asked.

"Obviously I am the last Uchiha. This village is desperate to have me." Sasuke managed to say that even more smugly.

Kakashi didn't change his expression though, "Is that so? Well I am not giving you the bells. You can try and take it."

Sasuke scowled. He walked up to Kakashi and tried to take the bells. His hand was immediately caught. He was flunked far over Kakashi's head.

Sasuke righted himself mid-air and glared at Kakashi. Kakashi reached into his kunai pouch making Sasuke tense. He was shocked though on seeing Kakashi take out a book. His shock turned into anger, _'He is mocking me. An Uchiha'._

He took Kakashi's words to heart and made the required handseals for his signature jutsu. He yelled, "Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu". A fireball was spat out of his mouth. It hit Kakashi dead on. Sasuke smirked, "Hnn…No one is stronger than an Uchiha" He said.

A voice from behind him startled him, "Hmm…Is that so?"

Sasuke jumped away and turned back to see Kakashi standing there seemingly unharmed. Even his book was okay. Sasuke got angrier and repeated the Jutsu. And the same thing happened. He did it a few more times. On his fourth try Kakashi didn't reappear.

Sasuke was already panting from using the Jutsu for so many times but still smirked, "Hah…See…I said so."

The voice that came this time though terrified him instead of startling him, "Hnn…Foolish little brother. Such level of Jutsu cannot kill me."

Sasuke turned back to come face to face with his brother, Itachi Uchiha. His fear turned into a look of hatred, "Itachi how did you get here? Doesn't matter, I will kill you this time."

He took out a kunai and ran at his brother to kill him. He stabbed him successfully. Instead of blood coming out of Itachi's wound though, his whole body turned black before it burst into a several crows which flew a bit away and merged back into Itachi. Itachi repeated, "Foolish little brother. You can't kill me like that."

Sasuke attempted to kill him again but ended up with the same result. He was never able to figure out he was in a Genjutsu.

Kakashi was standing over Sasuke's now and then twitching form, reading from his book. He had already went and fought both Namiko and Shino individually before leaving, for them to form a plan. He was surprised to see Sasuke still stuck in the Genjutsu. He was surprised though when Sasuke's still unconscious body somehow took out a kunai.

In the Genjutsu, Sasuke was panting in front Itachi who kept on repeating the same words. Even an idiot would have realised he was in a Genjutsu by now, but Sasuke was too much blinded by his hate.

The Genjutsu Itachi looked at Sasuke and said something else for the first time, "Pitiful little brother…you still did not realise the true power of my Genjutsu. Let me put you in another one." His Sharingan started spinning while forming into a pinwheel.

Everything in front of Sasuke turned black and white. He was re-experiencing the Tsukuyomi Itachi had casted on him four years ago. Intending to dispel the Genjutsu and believing his form in the Genjutsu was not real, he took his kunai and stabbed it through his throat.

In the real world, Sasuke's body mimicked his Genjutsu self before Kakashi could stop him. The pain immediately woke him up. Before he could realise he had stabbed himself in real, the pain became overwhelming and he started to thrash around.

Kakashi was shocked. How the heck did this happen? Sasuke stabbed himself so abruptly that he couldn't stop him. And now he was close to dying. He decided to rush him to the hospital but stopped himself, _'He will die before I reach there. Wait a minute there is a medic in the team'._

"Namiko, Shino the test is over. Namiko there is a medical emergency, come here immediately." Kakashi yelled out.

Namiko had already heard Sasuke yell. She rushed to where Kakashi was to see Sasuke thrashing around holding his bleeding throat. She immediately went to work after telling Kakashi to keep Sasuke from thrashing anymore.

After sometime, during which Shino had arrived, Sasuke stopped squirming and was put unconscious. Namiko wanted an explanation but put it for after her mother had checked Sasuke up, which she advised.

* * *

Tsunade came out of Sasuke's operating room to meet the waiting Kakashi.

"Kakashi, how did something like this happen on a simple Genin test?" She asked.

After Kakashi was done explaining, Tsunade along with Namiko and Shino sweatdropped. Yeah even Shino. "He stabbed himself in the throat to dispel a Genjutsu? Why would he stab himself there of all places? Why did he stab himself in the first place? A simple nick could have dispelled a Genjutsu." Namiko said.

Kakashi just shrugged, "I don't know. I just put him in the 'Hell Viewing Technique'. He was okay for a long time, just squirming a bit. Then before I knew it, he took out a kunai and stabbed himself. Anyway how is he Tsunade-sama?"

Tsunade sighed, "Well he will live. But his voice box is completely damaged, so he will not be able to talk anymore. Same with the wind pipe. He has to wear a breather for the rest of his life and any strenuous activity is banned from now. So yeah, he has to be taken out of the shinobi program."

* * *

After reporting to the Hokage, it came out that all the teams except team 10 failed. Sasuke could not be a ninja anymore, Sakura refused to be in a team without Sasuke in it, and Menba did not want to work with his team at all.

So he rearranged the genins to make two teams. Hinata was put with Kiba and Shino to make the tracker team like it was supposed to and Namiko, Naruto and Sai were put together for Kakashi to lead.

* * *

AN:

Sasuke lived in this Omake, because killing him was becoming boring. So I had him suffer instead.

Now for Fuyou Menba. His name can mean 'Bamboo Grass', 'Dependent Member' or 'Unnecessary Member' depending on how you write it in Japanese. I meant the third one, as is clear from the chapter. He was added there just to make the team, so that I could bring in a canon character afterwards and finalize the team instead. I have already said that I do not like to use OC's. That's why Menba only lived for three chapters.

Aren't bad things happening to Hinata more and more? Well that is how life goes, don't you think? Four things go bad before only one good thing happen? So Hinata's team failed, but Jiraiya has an idea to pass her team. Many of you probably already know who I'm going to place on the team.

And Hinata the strongest Hyuuga of the current generation? How? What happened to Neji? Well he is there. I didn't kill him off or something. His entry is near.

This is the first time I've written a full fight scene, even though it was not that long. I hope its good enough.

Like in the tenth chapter, I will now try and answer your questions in the reviews itself unless there is some suggestion which I think everybody should know about. Well till the next time.


	12. Enter the mighty Kyuubi, again

Thank you for your reviews and this time for your patience since this is a late update. I have been very busy and will be for this as well as the next week, so expect late updates this and for a few more chapters. I'm sorry for that.

 **TheWateringWizard:** I didn't answer your review on chapter 11 mainly because I wanted to keep it a secret for one more chapter, just in cases where readers have not been to the review section. But yes you are indeed right, on both occasions.

 **bankai777:** Well, I have not planned that far ahead, so I don't know when Naruto or Namiko will meet Utakata. But that is definitely a long way still.

 **Justaguy007:** You are welcome. Heres another one.

 **GunBlade2018:** I will try my best to.

 **Darashiko:** Thankzz.

Well this chapter is long, so no further ado.

"Speaking/YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

 **Naruto still does not belong to me.**

* * *

Chapter 12: Enter the mighty Kyuubi, again

Hinata, even after being assured by her sensei that she would not let them fail, was walking towards the village looking dejected. Even though it was not her fault, the failure of her team weighed heavily on her. Sai was being himself while walking behind her in a textbook bodyguard style, just like the mission he was assigned. Considering her strength it was obviously not needed but Anko saw it important to do so in case she encountered a Hyuuga on the way, who may take it out of her that she failed and report it to the Elders. Sai would be better at lying at that point, because of his lack of expressions.

Hinata's sad mood was lifted a little by a familiar voice calling her name. She lifted her head to look at the source of the voice and indeed both Naruto and Namiko were walking towards them. On seeing Naruto though, she immediately remembered Anko's last words to her and blushed furiously.

This was what both the twins saw when they reached closer to the remaining team 11. But since Hinata blushing around Naruto was nothing new, they didn't pry. Sai though was not familiar to these kind of reactions, "It seems Hinata-san is allergic to both of you."

All three of them sweatdropped. Namiko wanted to correct him but stopped herself. If she told him that Hinata was blushing, then he would ask why, whose answer she couldn't give without revealing Hinata's feelings towards Naruto. So she avoided correcting him instead.

"Anyway, Hina-chan what happened in your test? You were tested too right? Like we were?" Namiko asked.

Hinata immediately went back to her dejected mood, which answered Namiko's question. Both the twins were shocked, "How?" They asked at the same time.

Hinata and Sai looked at each other before Hinata started explaining. After the explanation, both the Senju twins were rightfully furious.

"That no good civilian. I still don't know how Kiba managed to rank lower than that piece of sh-" Namiko's curse was stopped by Naruto, "Language, Miko." He said. Namiko stopped with a 'Hai Onii-sama'.

"But what you say is true. I already knew Kiba was a far better ninja than him, but this guy seemed to have touched a new low." Naruto said.

He then turned to Sai as if just noticing him and extended a hand, "Hi there! We were not introduced properly before, I'm Naruto Senju."

Sai looked at the offered hand for a little while before shaking it, "I'm Sai. Nice to meet you, Senju-sama."

Both the twins were surprised. They were expecting a weird nickname.

"I thought you gave anybody who wanted to be your friend a nickname?" Naruto asked.

Sai gave him his usual smile, "Hinata-san taught me yesterday to only give someone a nickname once you get to know them better."

Naruto nodded, "An advice you should follow. By the way you don't need to call me 'Senju-sama'. Call me Naruto instead."

Namiko introduced herself as well, "I'm Namiko Senju. You can call me Namiko."

Sai nodded. Naruto turned back to Hinata, "Don't worry Hinata, Anko-sensei will definitely do something about this."

Hinata was not as much optimistic, "But what if there isn't any Genin free to make a team?"

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, they would need someone who is capable and fre-" He stopped midway as an idea popped into his mind before grinning, "Well let's see if Anko-sensei is able to get someone. Otherwise I have someone in mind who fits the role perfectly."

Hinata and Sai were confused but Namiko seemed to have realized who her brother was talking about and grinned similarly.

"Don't worry about that. Hina, you know this news cannot reach the Hyuuga elders. It would be better not to report to your father just now." Naruto advised her to which she nodded.

"Well in that case, why don't you hang out with us?" Namiko suggested.

After Hinata nodded, Namiko looked at Sai, "You are free to join as well if you want." Sai nodded too.

"Okay then let's go to Ichiraku Ramen, it has been a long time since we eaten there." Naruto suggested, more like ordered since he had already started walking towards the shop with Namiko following him.

* * *

On the way to the ramen shop, the group made up of the Senju twins, the Hyuuga heiress and the former ROOT, met up with another group of three.

At the head of the group was the oddest one of all and the fact that he was hand walking was only one reason for it. The other would be the larger than normal eyebrows over a set of round eyes on a face with bowl-cut hairstyle. The third reason would be the green body-hugging jumpsuit worn in conjunction with orange leg warmers.

Following him, looking utterly embarrassed by her teammate's actions was a girl with dark brown hair done in two Chinese-style buns. She wore a pink sleeveless qipao-style blouse with red sleeve trimmings and yellow fastening buttons and dark green pants.

Beside her, trying to look like he did not belong in the group was a Hyuuga, obvious because of his eyes. He had long dark brown hair and wore a beige-coloured shirt, a dull blue shirt beneath that along with brown pants. Unlike Hinata who wore her forehead protector around her neck, he wore on it on his forehead, like most of the branch family members of the Hyuuga clan did to hide the Clan's Cage Bird Seal.

On seeing Hinata and the Senju twins, the male Hyuuga stopped his I'm-not-with-him act and greeted them, "Nice to meet you Naruto-sama, Hinata-sama, N-Namiko-sama."

Naruto grinned at his stuttering at Namiko's name, "Neji, your and Hinata's stuttering make it look like it's a family problem."

The otherwise proud Hyuuga couldn't get his composure back at that remark. Neither could Namiko for that matter. She glared at her brother. These were the times when she suspected he actually knew about Hinata's feelings for him but was for some reason not acting on them. Otherwise how could he read her reactions so well and completely miss similar reactions from Hinata.

Naruto didn't wait for them to get their composure back though and asked the bun-haired girl, "So Tenten where were you headed? Since you are all together, I guess you either got back from a mission or are going to one?"

Before Tenten could answer, the odd looking one sprang to his feet and gave Naruto a thumbs up, "Indeed you are correct, Naruto-kun. We just finished a youthful mission and were going to eat something to regain our youthful energies."

Naruto sweatdropped at his strange way of talking while Tenten sighed. She had been his teammate for six months now, and while she was somewhat used to his behaviour, it still annoyed her.

Meanwhile Namiko after having gotten herself together was in the process of not letting Neji do so. By continuously molesting him in different ways while Hinata was trying to pry her off.

Naruto's sweatdropped got bigger. Namiko, for the most part, grew up to be exactly like their mother with her insane Chakra Control and interest in medical ninjutsu. But she was slightly affected by their perverted uncle as well. Thankfully only Neji has ever been her target of perversion. Not wanting to have Neji lose his honour on the street he said, "Enough Namiko. Stop acting like that in public otherwise I will tell mother and she will use you as a punching bag for today's Taijutsu practice."

Namiko immediately jumped off Neji and stood behind her brother in complete attention leaving Hinata blinking with empty hands.

Neji composed himself and thanked Naruto, "Thank you, Naruto-sama. Though I see an unknown member in your group today." He said noticing Sai at the back.

Hinata decided to introduce him, "Neji-niisan, this is Sai, my teammate."

Neji looked at Sai, sizing him up before walking up to him, "Please watch over Hinata-sama for me. She is sometimes too kind-hearted to be a ninja." He said politely before he activated his Byakugan and glared at him, "Or else you would be answering me."

Sai was not intimidated by the glare though, "I will. Hinata-san is my first friend after all."

"Wow Neji. Over-protective much?" Naruto commented.

Neji turned his Byakugan off and looked at him, "Not at all. In fact you should have had similar conversations with Namiko-sama's teammates as well."

Naruto sweatdropped, "Yeah. Imagine me holding Sasuke up by his collar and threatening him like that. Wait a minute." He took on a thinking pose, "That actually doesn't sound so bad." He made a shadow clone of himself and ordered him, "Go find Sasuke and give him our protective brother treatment." For some reason he didn't think of doing something similar to Shino at all. The Clone gave him a salute and prepared to jump on a roof and find the only residing Uchiha. It was dispelled though, courtesy of a kunai thrown by a blushing Namiko, "There is no need for that Onii-sama. You know I can take care of myself." She looked a Neji and continued, "And there is no need for threatening Sai tool, Neji-kun. Hina-chan can take care of herself as well." Hinata nodded at that.

"And stop addressing us with 'sama' already. I already told you to call me by my name." Naruto told Neji.

Neji wanting to embarrass Naruto as revenge said, "I cannot do that. Since I call Hinata-sama as such, I have to address you with respect as well."

Just like he wanted, Naruto as well as Hinata turned red at that. Hinata obviously more noticeably than Naruto.

Tenten wanting to stop this back and forth embarrassing session said, "Enough of all this, I'm starving here. Can we just go eat already?"

Namiko after relishing in the expressions on her brother's and Hinata's faces answered her, "Yeah, we were going to get some ramen, do you want to join us?"

Tenten answered with a desperate expression, "Anything will do right now after that gruesome run."

Namiko was confused, "What gruesome run?"

It was answered by the third member of the team, "Me and Neji made a youthful bet on who could to reach the village sooner. I unfortunately lost. So I vowed to walk to the restaurant on my hands. I offered to have Tenten sit on my foot but she refused."

Neji scowled at him though, "I don't how you say you lost Lee. I didn't accept that bet at all."

Lee turned to Neji, "Indeed you didn't my eternal rival. But I imagined you did and I lost to your imaginary self, so I'm fulfilling my self-vow." He then immediately went back to hand walking.

Everyone except Sai had another round of sweatdrops before they ignored the hand walking member of the group and resumed their trek towards the ramen shop.

* * *

Ichiraku Ramen

From the outside, Ichiraku ramen didn't seem special. It looked like a typical small ramen bar. But the ramen made by the owner and chef Teuchi was one of, if not the best ramen in the Village Hidden in the Leaves. And Naruto and Namiko were hooked to the taste of his ramen. Sadly their medic mother had –greatly-limited their ramen intake. So they cherished the time they were able to binge on the food of gods.

But for some reason, even with their love for ramen, they could not beat the small and meek Hyuuga heiress in a ramen eating contest. And while the Senju twins and Hinata were binging of the soupy cuisine, Neji and Tenten were sitting further away, pretending they were not with the trio and Lee was already out cold in trying to outdo the three in the contest. Sai was there too, smiling as usual.

Finally Naruto and Namiko could not eat any further and accepted their loss. Hinata set down her 24th bowl and grinned at them. Somehow a grin on her face looked more devilish than it would on a real devil.

Namiko weakly pointed at Hinata and declared, "Someday, Hina. Someday, I will defeat you and I will be grinning at you like that."

Neji, now sitting closer as they had completed the contest, looked proud, "Hmph…As expected of Hinata-sama. Even the Senju's cannot win against the might of the Hyuuga."

Tenten sweatdropped, "There was nothing to do with might here though." Her straight comeback was sadly ignored.

Sai decided he should say something here as well, "So that's why she is wearing that bulky jacket. She is probably fat right now." His comment didn't go unheard and he was immediately bombarded with killing-intent from four different individuals. Naruto, Namiko, Neji and even Hinata were glaring at him, leaking KI. Even though Hinata was very kind, she was also a girl and girls never let comments on their weight go unpunished.

Hinata stopped glaring and smiled sweetly at Sai, "Sai-kun, it seems more lessons on behaviour are needed for you."

Before she could start her 'lesson', she was interrupted, "My, my, I'm starting to like you more and more princess."

Hinata turned towards the person, "Anko-sensei." She made hopeful expression before continuing, "Since you are here, does it mean you found someone for the team?" She asked.

Anko puffed her chest proudly, "Of course." She declared.

Hinata brightened up at that. Even Sai's smile seemed slightly more natural.

Neji was confused though, "What do you mean 'found someone for the team'? For that matter, who is your third teammate, Hinata-sama? I completely forgot to ask about that."

Hinata ducked her head. She didn't want to tell him that in the first place. Namiko sensed it and took on the job of explaining it to him, "Well you see, it happened like this…" She started repeating what Hinata had told them.

After Namiko was done explaining, Neji was, just like others, angry, "What? Why didn't you tell me before? The Hyuuga elders will raise hell for this."

Anko calmed him down, "Relax, pretty boy. I got a third member for the team. So team 11 passes too."

"Yeah about that. How and who did you get to be on the team?" Naruto inquired.

"Well…" Anko started.

 _Flashback_

 _Hokage's Office during team status report_

 _Everyone was surprised on Jiraiya's sudden entry. Except the Hokage. He was used to Jiraiya not using the door. It had been several uncounted years since Jiraiya had last entered his office through the door._

 _"What do you mean you can help with that, Jiraiya?" Hiruzen asked his student._

 _"I mean that I know someone who is in the need of a team." Jiraiya answered._

 _"And who would that be?" The Hokage asked again._

 _"I already told you about him. I told you he would join the village when the brats graduate." Jiraiya said sceptically._

 _Hiruzen seemed to have realized who his student was talking about. Sadly this was not the case with the rest of the jounins._

 _Kakashi was the one to voice their curiosity, "I'm sorry, Jiraiya-sama. But who is it you are talking about? And what do you mean 'he would join the village'?" He knew who the 'brats' were._

 _Jiraiya seeing that the others were unaware, explained, "You see, six years ago, I was sneaking around in Water Country. There I met a young boy. He was an orphan and was at the end of his life when I found him. He lived for as long as he did by stealing food in the cold weather. I only wanted to offer him food and move along, but he followed me. He had somehow figured out I was a Shinobi from outside the water country and asked me to teach him. I wanted to deny him but then he showed me his Bloodline (Kekkei Genkai). Knowing that the whole Water country was going through the Bloodline purges, I decided to at least take him out of there. He ended up stuck with me and I've been training him since then. Now though I think it's time he joins a team and get some experience of working in one."_

 _While everyone was still processing everything, Anko had stars in her eyes. Here was the chance to make her own complete team, no way was she letting it go._

 _She used what she knew was Jiraiya's weakness. She opened her trench coat slightly and clasped her hands together, accentuating her already plentiful breasts. She made a cute expression to go along with her acting, "Ne~ Jiraiya-sama~ Won't you lend me your student to form a team~?" She said in a sing song cute voice._

 _She got Jiraiya's attention with it, but he was not alone. Everyone's gaze, except the women's, was drawn towards the pressed together chain mail clad breasts. The old Hokage was desperately trying to avert his gaze. Kurenai was one by one glaring at all the men in the room before resting her glare on Anko herself. She knew this was quite a common technique for Kunoichi to use and lure a target, didn't mean she had to like it._

 _Jiraiya though was not a pervert. No he was something beyond that. He was a super pervert. While Anko was indeed beautiful -gorgeous would be a better word- and definitely sexy, Jiraiya was not that weak to fall for such simple gesture. "Of course, he is yours to do what you please from now on." Or maybe he was._

 _Anko started to jump in happiness. The Hokage, now undistracted, cleared his throat to calm Anko down. She did so but still kept a full blown smile on her face._

 _"While I'm happy that Jiraiya has allowed his student to become a genin in your team Anko, the decision to do so still rests with me." The Hokage said worrying Anko._

 _"But…but you said you wanted to complete the team." Anko whined._

 _Hiruzen was having too much fun to stop, "I did. But that was for the genins from Konoha. This young man, whose name might I add you still don't even know, is from a different country. I cannot just take in anyone from a different country without first running a full investigation on them."_

 _Jiraiya might have been hurt by his sensei's lack of trust in him, if he didn't already know what he was trying to do._

 _"But…but…but…"Anko stammered._

 _"But. He is trained by Jiraiya and has been with him for six years now. In addition to that I have personally met the young man and know that he will be an excellent addition to our village. So, Haku Yuki is given the rank of genin and is assigned to jounin Anko Mitarashi as the third member of team 11." The third Hokage announced._

 _Anko immediately brightened up and repeatedly bowed to the Hokage thanking him over and over. She stopped midway and turned to Jiraiya, "Where is he now by the way, Ero-sennin?" She asked._

 _Jiraiya got a tick mark on his forehead, "Ero-sennin? You called me 'Jiraiya-sama' just a few moments ago. What happened to that?"_

 _Hiruzen answered him on behalf of Anko, "You already know the reason for that. Nobody but Haku, Shizune and Kakashi still call you Jiraiya-sama even after they got to know how big of a pervert you are."_

 _Jiraiya, depressed on being told that, squatted in the corner of the room drawing circles on the floor all the while muttering 'Nobody respects me' over and over._

 _"Anyway, Anko, I will tell Jiraiya to inform Haku to meet you at your team's designated training ground tomorrow early in the morning. You may administer your test again or you can ignore it. Your wish." The Hokage told her before adding, "Now that it's over, you are dismissed." Everyone left the room on being told, except Jiraiya who hanged back._

 _Flashback End_

Namiko sweatdropped at her explanation, "Doesn't that mean that it was Ero-ojii who found the last teammate and not you?"

Anko made an annoyed expression, "But I convinced him, didn't I?"

Namiko replied, "Yeah but it seemed like he was already going to let Haku join your team. So it's not like you made him do something he didn't want to."

Anko gritted her teeth before she hmph-ed, "Whatever, princess, ghostboy, we are meeting again tomorrow at the same training ground at the same time. We will be meeting our last teammate there." She said before muttering, 'Now to get some Dango.' and Shunshined out of there.

Namiko turned to Hinata after Anko left, "Well there you have it Hina. You are now an official genin just like us. You don't have to tell those old wind bags in your clan that you failed because of some no good guy the first time. You can just say you passed on your first try."

Neji didn't agree with Namiko though, "That cannot be done. The Elders already know who were on Hinata-sama's team. For people as ancient as them, they know how to gather information. They would ask why the last member was changed after the test was administered."

Hinata however had some hope, "I will tell Father about it. I'm sure he will be able to explain the situation to the Elders."

While Neji didn't completely believe it, he nodded nonetheless.

Naruto, seeing that everything was settled, said, "So now that we are done eating, Hinata's team have now passed and everyone is free, what should we do?"

"Well I just want to go home and get some rest after today's unneeded workout." Tenten said while glaring at Lee.

Lee didn't pay the glare any mind, "I have regained my youthful energy. I must seek out Guy-sensei and continue to fan my flames of youth through more training." He didn't wait for anyone to respond and shot off to find his equally weird sensei.

"Strange one, that person." Sai commented.

Everybody sweatdropped at him, _'You are one to talk'_ they thought.

Hinata recovered and asked Sai, "What about you Sai-kun?"

Sai smiled, "Since I am a genin now, I probably have to leave the ANBU quarters that I was assigned and have to move to some other place. I will look for it."

Hinata nodded. After both Sai and Tenten left, the rest, two Hyuuga and two Senju looked at each other.

"Well I guess since four of us are free, why don't we train together? With all of us now being genins and in different teams, we will probably get very few chances to do so." Naruto suggested.

Namiko agreed, "Yeah. Let's go to our usual place. We can train as well as relax some afterwards."

The Hyuuga cousins nodded their agreement and all of them left the ramen establishment towards wherever this 'usual place' was.

* * *

The 'usual place' was a lake supplied by a waterfall in a forest on the top of the Hokage Mountain. They used it to practice Taijutsu or Kenjutsu on the surface of water which at the same time improved their chakra control. Chakra control was a necessary skill needed for both medical ninjutsu as well as Gentle fist. So this type of training was very effective for both the Senju twins and the Hyuuga cousins.

They were already done with their spars and were relaxing on the lake shore when Hinata decided to ask Naruto about something she had in mind.

"Um…Naruto-kun. You said earlier that you knew someone to recommend for my team. Who was it?" She asked.

"You don't have to worry about that. The one Ero-oji suggested is the same person I was going to. His name is Haku Yuki. He is from the Yuki clan of Kirigakure. Oji found him on the streets of some town in the water country and took him as a student. He is a nice guy, very polite." Naruto said before he grinned, "Namiko was _very_ fascinated on seeing him yesterday when he came to our house. He lives with us too."

Neji, who was laying on one side, sat up straight abruptly but controlled himself enough to not say anything. Namiko instead was glaring at her brother, "Nothing like that happened." She said.

"It did Miko-chan and you know it. I and Shizu-nee saw you blushing up a storm on seeing Haku." Naruto rebutted.

Namiko blushed and looked down to avoid looking at Neji while he had a contemplating look on his face. Naruto, not wanting to trouble his sister more, said, "But don't worry Neji. She didn't molest him like she does you. So I think you are safe right now." Namiko blushed harder while Neji got some dusting on his cheeks but didn't change his expression.

'I think I need to have more than just the protective brother talk with this Haku.' Neji said to himself in a quiet voice.

Unfortunately it wasn't quiet enough and was heard by the rest. It resulted in Namiko nearing Hinata's record in turning red. But the Hyuuga Heiress had set the bar pretty high in that department. And Naruto and Hinata laughed, well Naruto laughed Hinata just giggled.

Naruto stopped his laugh and took on a serious face, "All jokes aside, we have something very important to tell you two." The Senju twins had decided to tell the Hyuuga cousins about the Kyuubi whenever they were together. This seemed like a proper time.

Hinata stopped her giggling and Neji and Namiko composed themselves before Naruto continued, "You remember the seal on us we talked about back when Neji was still fate's bitch." Neji frowned on being reminded how he acted towards his family. Instead of cherishing what he had, he continuously mourned what he lost and hated his cousin for something she had no control over. Now while he still hated most of the Hyuuga main branch, he didn't hate his cousins or his uncle anymore.

"Don't remind me." Both Namiko and Neji said.

Naruto smiled, "Well yeah, we now know what that is for."

Both the Hyuugas were surprised. "Really! You said it was used to seal something." Hinata exclaimed. She was too curious to stutter.

"It does. It holds something very big." Namiko said. She knew she had to tell them but wasn't sure what their reactions would be. She knew Hinata was very kind and wouldn't judge them on something they didn't do. She had been subjected to something similar after all. And Neji also went through similar circumstances. Though he was not hated because of the seal on his forehead, he was treated like a servant in his own clan filled with his relatives.

Naruto was similarly anxious about telling them about the Kyuubi. This was not something he could anticipate the outcome of. He believed in Hinata and Neji though so he continued.

"Yeah. Apparently the Kyuubi was not killed by the Fourth Hokage. It was instead sealed. He divided Kyuubi's chakra into his Yang and Yin nature and sealed them into us. The seals on our bellies each hold half of the Kyuubi." He braced himself after finishing. He had dropped the bomb and now he had to wait for the reaction.

Hinata and Neji both had their jaws on the ground. Of all to things to be sealed in them, they didn't think it would be the Kyuubi. Sure they had their birthday on the same day of the Kyuubi attack and they had more than one source of chakra but connecting these things to the Kyuubi didn't ever presented themselves in their wildest imaginations.

Hinata after collecting her dropped jaw, uttered a quiet "Why?"

Sadly the Senju twins did not understand in what context the Hyuuga Heiress asked that question. Was it 'why are you telling us now?' or 'why would the Fourth Hokage do that?' or worse 'why should we be friends anymore?' ? The twins didn't know.

Thankfully Hinata elaborated, "Why did the Fourth Hokage chose you to do it?"

The twins were not expecting this question, but they were glad this one was asked instead of the ones they had imagined.

"I don't know. It was probably because we were the only new-borns that day and we are descendants of the Uzumaki clan through our Great Grandmother. Apparently only an Uzumaki can hold the Kyuubi. But since we are not pure Uzumakis, one of us could not have held all of the Kyuubi's chakra. So he had to divided it and seal it into the two of us." Naruto theorized. Unknowingly he was quite close to the truth.

Hinata and Neji not having any other explanation nodded.

"So, you two are Okay with it?" Namiko asked anxiously.

It was Neji who answered, "As a person who is burdened with a seal just because of his birth, I cannot rightfully hate you two."

Hinata nodded, "I was hated by the elders because I could not defend against a jounin when I was four years old. If I hate you because a monster was sealed into you by someone else when you didn't have a choice, I would have to hate myself too."

Naruto smiled, "You used to hate yourself before, remember. But I'm glad. Both for not hating us and not hating yourself anymore." Hinata blushed at that.

"But you know, the Kyuubi is not that bad of a guy." Namiko said shocking Hinata and Neji again.

Naruto groaned, "Talk about yourself. Mine is just 'I am the mighty Kyuubi' and 'you are a puny fleshbag' yada yada."

Both the Hyuugas turned their shocked look at him. "What do you mean he is not a bad guy? How do you know?" Neji asked.

Since Namiko was the one to raise the topic, she answered, "Well Ero-oji came yesterday and loosened our seal just enough for us to try and talk to the Kyuubi and make a deal with him."

Hinata didn't like Naruto or Namiko making a deal with the demon, literally, "What kind of deal?" She asked.

Naruto and Namiko looked at each other before telling them their own interaction with Kyuubi. Namiko was the first one to start.

 _Namiko's Flashback_

 _Once she was able to relax and meditate like Ero-oji told her, she suddenly felt wetness on her feet. She opened her eyes to see what it was but was greeted with darkness. After her eyes adjusted she was able to see straight walls with pipes running along them, like a sewer. She concluded that this was probably the manifestation of her seal. But she couldn't locate the Kyuubi anywhere. She tried to sense his chakra but found that she could sense nothing. Nothing in the sense that she wasn't even able to sense her mother or oji. Not even her brother. This was the first time in her conscious life that she couldn't sense her brother. She didn't like that feeling one bit. But determined to find the Kyuubi, she started walking forward. She didn't know where she was going but she continued anyway._

 _Her walk was fruitful. After sometime she reached a place which looked like a room with no apparent ceiling. There was a giant barred gate in front of her which was closed with a paper tag with the kanji of 'Seal' on it._

 _"This should be where the Kyuubi is." She said to herself._

 _She was surprised when her statement was replied, **"Indeed it is, Human."**_

 _From behind the gate, she could she two large red eyes open and peer at her. She was scared of him sure, but was confident on the Fourth Hokage's seal, so she stood her ground._

 _Kyuubi noticed her determination, **"I applaud you on standing your ground against me, Human. As I have collected, you are here to make some kind of deal are you not?"** He asked surprising Namiko. She thought he would be more hateful._

 _"Well yeah I am. But I'm surprised you are being this much civil towards me. I thought you would be quite angry at me for holding you prisoner for this many years." She said._

 _ **"Indeed, that would have been my attitude if I was the Yang part of myself. Fortunately for you most of the emotions that I had is in that part of my chakra, so I, the Yin half, cannot harbour such feelings. It is how all of us Bijuus are."** He answered._

 _Namiko didn't know that. But if what he said was true than her brother would be facing all the Kyuubi's hatred himself._

 _Since this was a mindscape and Namiko was inexperienced, her thoughts were easily read by the Yin Kyuubi._

 _ **"Indeed, your sibling will probably have a very hard time having a civil conversation with my Yang half."** Kyuubi said._

 _Namiko was shocked again, "What? How did you read my thoughts?" She asked._

 _ **"This is your mindscape. If you do not will it so, your thoughts will always reflect here. You have to will them consciously to keep them to yourself."** Kyuubi explained._

 _"I see. Well since you already know why I'm here, will you do it? You know we need each other to survive, so it would be better if we co-operate." Namiko said trying to make a deal._

 _ **"Normally I would be against on giving chakra to a Human who will use to fight. But what you say is true, seeing how the world currently is, it is more beneficial to work together than working alone."** He said. Namiko became happy at that before the Kyuubi continued, **"But I will not be giving you chakra whenever you wish, only when I think you need it. For that I need to experience whatever you do to decide if you need my chakra or not."**_

 _Namiko made a confused expression, "And how do we do that?" She asked._

 _The Kyuubi was surprised at her not objecting to such thing but answered anyway, **"You just need to consciously allow me."**_

 _Namiko nodded before she covered herself with her hands, "You won't be using it to peep on me, will you?" She asked._

 _The Kyuubi sweatdropped, **"Of course I won't. I don't have any interest like that in Humans."**_

 _Namiko grinned, "Then it means you have some interest in something else then. Maybe other Bijuu."_

 _If Kyuubi's fur wasn't dark reddish-orange, its embarrassment would have be apparent, **"I have nothing like that for anything."** He exclaimed._

 _Namiko was cheering to herself. She was able to embarrass a fucking Bijuu of all things._

 _"Well whatever you say. So we have a deal." Namiko said before extending her hands towards the cage, "Let's work together from now on Kyu…uhh…Do you have a name or are you just called Kyuubi? If you don't, I can give you one."_

 _The Kyuubi was really, really surprised by her question. He may not have the emotions his complete self had before, but he still remembered his stay in his two previous Jinchuurikis. None of whom had even tried to ask his name. But he was the Kyuubi and he could not just give his name so easily._

 _His raised his paw and touched Namiko's hand with one of his nails, which she grabbed, **"I do have a name but you have to prove your are worthy enough before I tell you."**_

 _Namiko frowned before making a determined expression, "Then I will definitely get your name out of you someday." She said before disappearing from her mindscape._

 _Yin Kyuubi stared at the place she was before saying, **"You just might."**_

 _Namiko's Flashback end_

Both Hinata and Neji were looking at Namiko wide eyed before Neji asked, "You accused the Kyuubi of peeping? The Kyuubi?"

Namiko glared at him, "Won't you if someone said they will experience everything you do?" She changed an expression to an innocent on before continuing, "Or do you want others to peep on me?"

Neji denied, flustered, "O-of course I will never want that to happen." Before he added in his mind, _'I'd rather do it myself.'_

Namiko grinned, "Neji Hyuuga, I know what you just thought. Don't worry I won't mind if you do it."

Neji was flustered even more, "I would n-never d-do such disgraceful things."

Namiko look regretful, "Shame. If I had the Byakugan that would be one of the first things I would do. I'm sure Hina-chan has done some of her own share of peeping, right Hina?" She asked.

The female Hyuuga present blushed hard, unable to either deny or agree to the question. Obviously because she had indeed done so and also was extremely embarrassed to admit it in front of the person she had done it to.

Naruto on seeing Hinata blush, sighed, "I'm surrounded by perverts."

Neji argued though, "Excuse me, Naruto-sama, but I'm not a pervert."

Naruto deadpanned at him, "And that red liquid coming out of your nose is your try in eating ketchup through your nose, I suppose?"

Neji's nose was indeed bleeding, which caused Namiko to turn a similar colour to Hinata. She was teasing him before but she would obviously be embarrassed if he had really done so.

Hinata looked abashed, "Neji-niisan, how could you?" She asked.

Naruto interjected before Neji could answer it, "He could because he is pervert."

"I'm not a pervert" Neji argued again vehemently.

"And you still haven't wiped your nose." Naruto pointed out to which Neji promptly cleaned his nose with a napkin.

"I hate you." Neji told Naruto.

"You can't. Since Me and Miko were basically the same being, if you hate me, you hate her too, which you can't." Naruto said.

Neji looked at him oddly, "What kind of logic is that? Who uses that kind of logic?"

Naruto's answer was something Neji should have expected, "Blondes do."

Neji looked at him with an 'are you crazy?' look but sweatdropped when he saw Namiko nodding at that. He didn't know how they did it, but he had witnessed Naruto and Namiko get out of many sticky situations by arguing with that point. He didn't know if he was trying to use the 'Blondes are dumb' cliché, since if Naruto was dumb then the normal minded people were dumber and the actually dumb people probably didn't have brains at all.

"I still don't know what you mean, when you say something like that. Do you Hinata-sama?" Neji asked.

Hinata shook her head, "I don't either. I asked Tsunade-sama about it once but she just got an oddly proud expression and then avoided answering it all together. Apparently Ino knows it too but won't tell me."

Neji sweatdropped again, _'So what? It is like a secret all the blondes in this world have?'_

He shook out that thought before asking Naruto, "Enough with this mindless argument. What happened during your meeting with the Kyuubi, Naruto-sama?"

Naruto groaned again, "Believe me, it wasn't even a shred as friendly as Miko's Kyuubi was."

 _Naruto's Flashback_

 _Just like Namiko, Naruto also opened his eyes to a place that greatly resembled a sewer. And like twin sister like twin brother, he decided to walk along the walls of the sewer and reached a similarly large, roofless room with a huge barred gate in front of him, closed shut with a seal tag._

 _Unlike his sister though he was able to immediately grasp the situation, "So this is what the mental representation of the seal looks. Well I wish it didn't look like a sewer of all things." He closed his eyes and imagined a better environment but when he opened them the surroundings hadn't changed._

 _"Hmm…It looks like I cannot change the surroundings in here even though it's my mindscape." Naruto mused to himself._

 _ **"That's because this place is filled with my will and my hatred."** A voice said from the other side of the gate._

 _Naruto turned towards the voice and saw the biggest living creature he had ever seen. And he had seen big creatures like his uncle's boss summon Gamabunta, who was easily as big as a three storey building. This one looked even bigger than him. With fur a reddish-orange colour, the creature looked very much like a Kitsune (Fox) except he somehow had five human like fingers for his front paws, albeit with very sharp looking nails. Its silted red eyes looked at Naruto with an expression he had expected, Hate._

 _ **"So you have finally decided you cannot stay without using my power, Human."** This was said more like a statement instead of a question._

 _Naruto was completely washed in the Kyuubi's Killer Intent. It was massive in comparison to the KIs of his mother or uncle, when they had decided to train them to withstand it._

'Wow what KI. I wonder if Miko is going through the same thing.' _Naruto thought._

 _ **"Hmph, my Yin half does not have any of the hatred I do. It is only a physical manifestation of my chakra without any of my emotions. So your fellow fleshbag is probably not facing my hatred like you."** The Yang Kyuubi answered after reading his thoughts that were reflected in the mindscape._

 _Naruto expected the Kyuubi to read his thoughts, "As I thought. You can read my thoughts when I'm in my mindscape. Well then you should already know why I'm here. Instead of just guessing it why don't you read it from my mind?"_

 _The Kyuubi was not happy on being talked to like that, **"Don't be so cocky in front of me Human. You are just a puny fleshbag that thrive on spreading hate. I am the Kyuubi no Yoko, I**_ **am _hate. I will make no deal with the likes of you."_**

 _Naruto though was not perturbed, "So you know I came to make a deal with you. Well if you don't want to make one now its fine." He said before smiling, "But we can at least start as being friends. We are, after all, stuck with each other. At least till I die, and I don't have any immediate plan of dying."_

 _Kyuubi scowled at him, **"Friends with a Human? That will never be happening. Your kind has only spread hate in this world with your immense greed. Greed which ended up with me and my brethren being sealed inside other humans and used as weapons of war and spread even more hate. So becoming friends or anything with you is out of question. And about being stuck together, don't worry about it. I will escape at the first chance I get. That will end up killing you though."**_

 _Naruto grinned at him, "Well good luck with that. I am sure you had a very good stay all these years while you were looked up tight. Frankly I don't think I need your power to get stronger. I have reached at this point by myself with the help of my family and friends and I will continue to do so without you."_

 _Kyuubi growled at him, **"You dare threaten me Human."**_

 _Naruto shook his head, "No, I'm telling you the truth. And the truth is, I don't need you to get stronger but you need me to get free. The only way you can get free is to give me chakra and try and overtake my body. But to do that the seal needs to be slightly loose like it is now. If you deny to work with me now, I will tell Ero-oji to seal you up tight enough for you to never see the light of the day. You will probably be free once I die, but I'm sure till then me and Miko will be able to show your Yin half that humankind can still be redeemed and when you merge with him, your hatred will be dampened at least slightly. If I can take away even some of the hatred from you, I would consider my task as your Jinchuuriki to be complete."_

 _Kyuubi was gritting his teeth. Naruto was right. If the seal was tightened like before there would be no chance of escape. While working with the brat can give him a way to do so. He didn't believe any of his words about taking away his hatred though. His hatred was immense, no mere mortal could take that burden and live._

 ** _"Very well. I will give you chakra when you need it. But beware I_ will **_**escape from here. I just need one slip from you. And you will take away my hatred you say. Don't kid yourself. The hate and rage that I have with me is too great to be carried by a mere Human like you without dying."** The Kyuubi said._

 _Naruto smiled, "I never said I would live after I rid you of your hatred." He took on a serious expression before adding, "But I have my own dreams to fulfil. Dreams that concern my family and I won't let you escape or let me die before I fulfil them. Count on it."_

 _He extended a hand towards the Bijuu, **"Anyway, let's work together from on Kyuubi."**_

 _Kyuubi growled and did not take the offered hand. Naruto sighed, "Well I guess this is the extent of our relationship right now. At least tell me your name. I'm sure you don't like to be called Nine-tails, just like how I won't like to be called by just my hair."_

 _Kyuubi's expression changed to curiosity for a brief, almost unpassed, moment before he growled, **"No mortal is worthy of knowing my name."** He blasted his chakra, kicking out Naruto from his own mindscape._

 _He laid down, resting his head on his front paws,_ **'Naruto Uzumaki. You are the first one to ask my name. But that won't be enough. Unless you can prove that you can withstand the hatred of this world, you will never be worthy enough to know my name.'** _He thought._

 _Naruto's Flashback End_

Hinata and Neji were wide eyed again. Neji composed himself before shaking his head in rejection, "You both are impossible. One accuses the Kyuubi of peeping and the other outright threatens him. Are you out of your mind?"

Naruto shrugged, "As I said, I was not threatening, just stating the fact. And I didn't lie either. I will rid Kyuubi of his hatred. I just have to figure out how. You see, I think the Bijuus are just misunderstood. They are powerful, yes, enough to destroy this village anytime they want. But for all the hatred Kyuubi had, he never once mentioned he hated Konoha. And the fact that he was conscious of the amount of hatred he had in him proves that they are intelligent creatures instead of being mindless, like people think."

Neji was still not seeing the reason for threatening the Kyuubi. Hinata did though, "So you mean, there was a reason he attacked our village."

Naruto nodded, "Exactly. Why would a Bijuu like Kyuubi suddenly appear and attack our village? Since he hates humans in general, he could have destroyed any and all of the villages that came in his way. But if that would have happened then our village would have anticipated his attack beforehand and prepared accordingly. Instead he appeared out of thin air and started attacking the village."

Namiko pointed out the key fact about the last statement, "Like a summoning."

"Exactly like a summoning. The question is who the heck is powerful enough to summon the Kyuubi. Also we only know the Kyuubi was sealed inside our Great Grandmother previously. But she died long before we were born. So where was the Kyuubi during that time? How did whoever summoned him found him and why attack the village? There are these lots of unanswered questions that leads me to believe that Kyuubi is not the culprit here. He is also a victim instead." Naruto concluded.

Neji didn't know how much of what Naruto said was right, "Well we can think about that after we have found enough leads to further investigate it. Meanwhile it is getting late and I believe we should retire to our homes now. After today's mission and the subsequent training, I am quite exhausted." He suggested.

All three of them nodded and after greeting each other goodbye both pair of siblings left towards their home.

* * *

Hokage's Office

Jiraiya was also, coincidentally, done reporting about both Naruto's and Namiko's encounter with the Kyuubi to his sensei. No matter how he felt about his nephew and niece, this was a matter of village security, so he had to report this to the Hokage.

The Hokage sat back in his chair contemplating on what he heard, "Hmm…that was a dangerous gamble Naruto-kun took with the Kyuubi. It's good that it ended somewhat well. But it is quite obvious that he would have to take extreme care in using Kyuubi's chakra since he himself told him that it was a way it could escape."

Jiraiya nodded, "Yeah, I and Hime think it was dangerous too but he had to do it to gain some sort of co-operation. It is building trust from there on. But don't worry about the Kyuubi taking over. I know for a fact that there are supposed to be two fail safes in the seal for that. I don't know what they exactly are, but I believe in Minato's seal work."

Hokage nodded. He did too. Truthfully he was more worried about Naruto at this point instead of the village. He knew it was wrong since he was the village leader but he couldn't help it. Both the Senju twins were dear to him.

His thoughts were interrupted by Jiraiya, "By the way, sensei. I know you took down ROOT three years ago and that the brats played some role in it. What exactly did happen? Even Tsunade-hime doesn't know the full details since she was guarding the twins."

Hiruzen was reluctant to answer his query. ROOT, no matter how it operated, was a very important part of the village. It carried out many jobs that the village did not need to be connected to. And Danzo was a very good friend. He always had a militaristic mind but his love for the village was no less than his own. But Jiraiya's current position requires for him to know this kind of information. So he reluctantly started telling the story of 'The Downfall of the ROOT'.

* * *

AN:

No Omake on this one. And yeah Haku is the third teammate. And Neji is Namiko's ship. I know it may seem odd for twins to date a pair of cousins. But they are cousins so it should still be somewhat okay. I didn't pair Neji with Tenten because I really didn't see anything in the anime or manga that hinted on any close relationship between them. Truth be told, in the movie Road to Ninja, he was peeping on Hinata. But that would border incest and Hinata cannot be with anyone except Naruto anyway, so I thought of pairing Namiko and Neji. And I thought it fitting that a pair of identical twins would have identical tastes. I also know of some real life examples where a pair of identical twins married another.

Kyuubi has officially entered. He has a split personality, literally since he is split in two beings now. Not much was shown about the personality of Yin Kyuubi in the canon. But Naruto did comment once that he was nicer than the Yang half. So I used it and formed the idea of two opposing personalities of Kyuubi.

Next chapter will be kind of special, it will mostly be a flashback into the time when the ROOT was taken down along with Danzo. So stay tuned for the next chapter.

Again the next chapter may or maynot be posted on this Saturday, since I will be very busy this week too. So till the next chapter, Adios.


	13. The Tree without roots

Hello again and thank you for your reviews on the last chapter and for your patience.

Very sorry for the three-week break. I was preparing to move to Germany for my master studies and after I moved, there were many things that were needed to be taken care of which kept me from writing. But now I'm mostly settled, so I can resume writing and updating.

Another thing, now that I have started my master studies, I'm not all time free anymore. I will still try to update every week, mostly on Sundays now, but it may be that I am not able to write a week. So I apologize in advance.

Now as promised, this chapter explains what happened to Danzo and his ROOT and why it happened. Some of you may like Danzo, some of you may not, I personally think many things, good or bad, wouldn't have happened without him. So, he was a necessary part to keep the original story going. Now if that is the case, why did I kill him off? Well to see how the story goes without him. Though to be frank everything that he did in the canon that affected everyone negatively has already been done in my story, so it's not like it changes much.

I had forgotten to bolden Kyuubi's words in the previous chapter. I have changed them now.

 **Note:** This chapter is almost completely flashback, that's why it's in italics.

Let's answer some reviews,

 **GunBlade2018 :** Thankzz.

 **Bloody Rogue dragon deity king :** Thanks to you too.

 **Beastyd22 :** I'm glad you like the story. Sorry for the wait you had to do for the chapter.

 **bloody dragon fang :** Thanks and I'll try to keep stuff new.

 **TheWateringWizard:** Yeah me neither.

This is different in this chapter

During Flashback:

 _"Speaking"_

 ** _"Summon Speaking"_**

'Thinking'

 **'Summon Thinking'**

Last part:

"Speaking/YELLING"

 **"Bijuu/Summon speaking/ YELLING"**

 _'Thinking'_

 ** _'Bijuu/Summon Thinking'_**

Now that I'm in Germany, this stuff has become very important. **I do not own the Naruto franchise.**

* * *

Chapter 13: The Tree without roots

 _3 Years Ago_

 _Tsunade and her twins were standing in the exact centre of the village. She wanted to test the exact range of their sensing abilities. For that purpose, they were standing in the middle of the village, trying to sense chakra signatures as far as they could. There were two signatures though who they were supposed to continuously focus on._

 _"So, where are they?" Tsunade asked._

 _Namiko and Naruto both were concentrating with their eyes closed but they managed to answer without losing concentration._

 _"Shizu-nee is inside the village, almost along the walls I think." Naruto said._

 _"And Kakashi-nii is probably in the forest behind the Hokage Monument, seeing as he is quite far away now." Namiko added._

 _Naruto nodded, "I can sense him too, but it is getting faint."_

 _Tsunade looked at Naruto, "Hmm…So your range is almost at its limit now. What about you Miko-chan?"_

 _"I can sense him completely fine. I can still feel his chakra quite well." Naruto replied._

 _"Aaand gone. I cannot sense Kakashi-nii anymore. I can still sense Nee though. She is circling the village." Naruto said._

 _Tsunade turned to the creature on her shoulder. It was not something any female would normally like to have on her body, but this one was special. The Slug on Tsunade's shoulder was no normal slug. It was the reason she was called the Slug princess. It was Tsunade's personal summoning creature Katsuyu._

 _"Katsuyu, tell Kakashi to stop and relay his location" She ordered the slimy creature._

 ** _"Hai Tsunade-sama."_** _It-she replied._

 _After a few moments, **"My clone said they are around 15 km far from the centre of the village."**_

 _Tsunade nodded, "I see, so Ruto-chan's limit is around 15 km. Tell him to go deeper. I want to know what Miko-chan's limit is. You can stop now Ruto-chan."_

 _Katsuyu did as was told._

 _Naruto, since he did not need to sense Kakashi anymore, started to do something else. Instead of trying to sense something above ground, he tried to search below it. He wanted to see if he could sense anything underground. And if he could, how far. So, he closed his eyes to concentrate his sensing below him._

 _Meanwhile Namiko was also concentrating on keeping Kakashi's chakra signature locked on. After some time, she opened her eyes, "I can't sense him anymore." She said._

 _Tsunade nodded to Katsuyu. She already knew what she had to do._

 ** _"He is in the same direction around 22 km away from here."_** _She said._

 _"So, Miko-chan can sense up to 22 km in a single direction. Miko-chan, can you still sense Shizune now?" Tsunade asked._

 _Namiko nodded, "Yes. She is in the direction completely opposite to Kakashi-nii. Though I was focusing on him for quite some time now during which I could only sense you, Onii-sama, Katsuyu-sama and him."_

 _Tsunade held her chin in her hand, "Hmm…So you can sense all around the village. That is at least 6 km in every direction, but to sense upto the distance of 22 km you had to sacrifice that. What about you Ruto-chan? Did you lose Shizune at all during your sensing?" She asked her son._

 _She however didn't get any reply and saw him staring intensely at the ground._

 _"Ruto-chan? Naruto?" She called._

 _Naruto didn't stop staring, "Kaa-chan, I know that the earth also normally has chakra running through it. But I can sense multiple chakra signatures moving around underground. All of them seem to be humans though." He said._

 _On hearing her brother say that, Namiko decided to try and sense underground as well. She didn't even have to concentrate much to sense the high amount of chakra activity going on under her, "Oni-sama's right. There are hundreds of chakra signatures under us. Some of them seem to be being expelled, like when someone performs a Jutsu."_

 _Tsunade didn't like the sound of that. She knew that some ANBU quarters were under the ground. But Namiko said there were hundreds of them there. It was impossible for that many ANBU's to be off duty at the same time._

 _"Can you count how many are there exactly?" She asked._

 _Both the twins shook their heads. Namiko was the one who answered, "It would take us quite a while to count all of them. The only time I have sensed more chakra signatures than this is when I sensed the whole village. And now that I'm concentrating my senses below us, it seems like I sensed them before as well but discounted them as being villagers."_

 _Tsunade was shocked to hear that. Konoha was at the top among the Five Great Shinobi Villages, when it came to population count. For that many chakra signatures to be underground, there wasn't a valid explanation to it._

 _Naruto added more to her shock, "I was able to sense the smallest chakra signature there. It is small but still slightly more than…I would say Hinata-chan."_

'The smallest signature but still more chakra than the Hyuuga heiress and she is no slouch in chakra capacity too.' _Tsunade thought. She turned serious before saying, "Training is over. Naruto, Namiko, you will go home directly. Katsuyu tell Shizune to reach home as well and Kakashi to meet me at Hokage's office."_

 _The twins were confused. Their mother suddenly turned serious and at one moment she actually looked afraid. But they did understand. Even though they were young, they knew that that many people underground was abnormal. As far as their knowledge went there was nothing supposed to be underground. So, they obeyed their mother and went home._

 _After the twins had left for home, Tsunade turned around and leapt towards the Hokage tower. She had an idea of what the twins had sensed underground. But she wanted to know if the Hokage was aware of it._

* * *

 _Hokage's Office_

 _Tsunade was already done explaining what her twins had sensed. Kakashi was also already there. The Hokage was currently contemplating on what to do. He knew what the twins had sensed was probably his old rival's organization, ROOT. An organization that he ordered him to disband. He already knew Danzo did not disband his ROOT. But he let him continue in the shadows because, at the end of the day, it benefitted the village and he himself didn't have to get his hands dirty. But if what the twins sensed was true then his rival had amassed himself an army now. He didn't even have as many regular ANBUs as Danzo seemed to have ROOT ones. Granted that it seemed that a hefty part of it seem to be still training._

 _Kakashi knew as well that ROOT was not completely disbanded. It just went into hiding. But their number shouldn't have been this high. This meant that a big part of villages military didn't actually answer to their commander, the Hokage, but a completely different person. If this other person worked for the Hokage, then the situation could have been overlooked. But while on the surface Danzo followed the Third, Kakashi knew first hand that he has, in the past, sanctioned many missions without the Hokage's consent. And nothing is stopping him from doing it further, since technically, ROOT didn't exist._

 _Tsunade didn't care who the village or the Hokage needed, in order to do their dirty work. She didn't like the fact that there were more than hundreds of ANBU-level Shinobi lurking under the ground her children walked on. Shinobi's that didn't answer the Hokage._

 _"Danzo's ROOT has gotten very big if the twins' reading is accurate. So, I must ask, how accurate do you think they are Tsunade?" The Hokage asked his student._

 _Tsunade would have taken offense to her children being doubted, but this was a very serious matter. A single wrong step could spiral out of control. Danzo not only had an army in all sense, he also was a councillor and very well politically connected. A wrong step taken against him could lead to her sensei's hat being taken from him and, gods forgive, given to Danzo of all people. But she had faith in her children's sensing ability._

 _"Namiko was able to sense Kakashi 22 km away from her while Naruto could do it for 15 while being able to sense Shizune at a distance of 6 km simultaneously. I think a few meters or even a kilometre under the ground is nothing for them to sense. They had sensed the chakra activity before but discounted them as being villagers and other Shinobis alike. Only after Naruto concentrated his ability below ground did they realise that a considerable part of the chakra signatures they used to sense were below them. They could not count how many of them exactly were there since there were a lot of them. But it would be quite worrying if there were even only 100 of them and I'm sure they could've easily counted if it was such a small number. The fact that they couldn't count all of them means they had to be at least more than 200." Tsunade answered._

 _The Hokage was not pleased with the answer. His own ANBU amounted around 500. If ROOT had even half of it, it was concerning. ROOT was supposed to carry out jobs that are off the records. Jobs that the village does not want to associate itself with. But a few special units are enough for that kind of purpose. What Danzo had though didn't count as 'few units'._

 _"Kakashi. You are assigned the leader of this operation. Prepare our ANBU unit covertly. We will be having a meeting with Danzo in few days." The Hokage ordered._

 _Kakashi understood the order but, "Hokage-sama. I don't think we should wait for few days for this meeting. Also, we don't know if any of the ROOTs have been planted within our regular ANBU forces. Word could reach Danzo before we can commence the 'meeting'." He said without any of his laid-back attitude._

 _"Hmm… you are right. The ANBU may be compromised but the regular force isn't. ROOTs training regime would make it difficult for them to blend into the crowd that doesn't wear masks to hide themselves. Spread the news to all the available Jounins. And send Hiashi Hyuuga to my office right away. We need to find a way to this underground base. I require specifically him though. I don't know if any other Hyuuga may be in the leagues with Danzo." The Third said. Kakashi nodded before disappearing in a cloud of smoke._

 _Tsunade shook her head, "You allowed Danzo to operate ROOT for this long and you don't even know where he is? You are very lax with him sensei."_

 _The Hokage nodded, "I definitely know where Danzo is supposed to be, but this underground base is something else, if we go wrong with anything the village could collapse on it. It's better to find one or more entrances and ambush him there."_

 _Tsunade sighed, "Well whatever you say, but I still think you should have kept Danzo in check more. This is your mess to clean and I don't want the kids to be any more involved than they already are, so I'm going home and staying with them while you sort this out."_

 _The Hokage just nodded._

* * *

 _At one of the Underground ROOT entrances_

 _As asked by the Hokage, the Hyuuga clan head had immediately arrived at the Hokage's office. After being told about the whole situation, he agreed to use his abilities to look for any way to enter the ROOT base. He was not allowed to go back to his clan compound though and was ordered to accompany the Hokage. He wanted to be sure that there was no way Danzo got any wind about the surprise raid on his turf._

 _The entrance was a normal looking jewellery shop. From the outside as well as from the inside, it was just that, normal. But this shop was apparently built over an entrance to the old underground passage ways that the ROOT now used. Similar entrance all around the village showed the old Third Hokage how much lax he had been towards his old rival and how, unlike him, Danzo was always ready to respond to an attack. Internally or externally. But he was here to remedy that. He just hoped he didn't lose someone who could be considered as the best strategist besides Shikaku in the village._

 _With his signal, all the gathered Jounins sneaked into the entrances. The civilians that operated all the disguised shops were quickly taken care of. They would probably have a few appointments, forced, with Ibiki._

 _After the entrances were secured, both Hiashi and Hiruzen entered the base, followed by other Jounins. The same happened with every other entrances except there was no Hokage or Hiashi with them. The route that the Third and Hiashi took apparently lea to, what Hiashi described as a strategy room. Even then it was hard to see that. Obviously, measures were taken to prevent the Byakugan to see the chakra inside the underground base. But that didn't stop Hiashi from figuring out these entry ways by looking at these black zones in his vision caused by the variety of seals to hide chakra and connecting them._

 _Once inside Hiashi was able to guide the Jounins with them to the nearest ROOT agent. It seemed whatever seals were used to block the Byakugan worked only one way. That though did not sit well with the Hyuuga Clan head. It meant that there was a chance there was a Hyuuga among the ROOT._

 _Like that all the Jounins and the Kage proceeded towards where Danzo was while encountering ROOT agents on the way. Not all of those confrontations ended well. And till the time they reached the Head of ROOT, many able but slightly misguided soldiers had to be put down._

* * *

 _ROOT HQ strategy room_

 _Danzo was, as mentioned before, one of the best strategists. So, it was quite obvious that he knew that his base was infiltrated and his agents were been taken down. Either killed or captured._

 _He was not an optimistic guy. Neither would he call himself pessimistic. What he called himself was realistic. Whatever he did was for the good of Konoha. He had decided early on during his sensei, Tobirama's teachings that his views about the world were very idealistic. A world where there is peace just on the basis of mutual understanding was not possible. He wanted to change this view the village had been taught. He thus wanted to become the Hokage. But sadly, in his final moments, his sensei decided to go for his rival Hiruzen instead. Hiruzen also sadly followed their sensei's idealistic views. But he tried to change this with Hiruzen. First by just plain talking then with some heavy-handed methods. But Hiruzen could not be swayed._

 _So, he decided to take matters in his own hands and used a few old underground tunnels and expanded them to make the base for his own faction of ANBU, the ROOT. He used it to manipulate many events to turn the tides of the Second and Third Shinobi world war in Konoha's favour, or his to be precise. While Konoha did somewhat come out victorious in Second war, it did not benefit him as much._

 _He did however saw a chance when his rival decided to end the Third Shinobi world war by making truce with the other villages. Danzo truly saw his own ideals in, oddly enough, one of Hiruzen's students. Orochimaru was someone he thought would share his ideals more. But sadly, Orochimaru was not selected to be the Fourth Hokage. Instead it was a person with the same ideology as his rival, Minato Namikaze._

 _After the Kyuubi attack, when Minato died, it was another chance for him to claim the seat of Hokage. But he was infuriated to see Hiruzen reclaim that seat again. That was why he decided it was of no use using indirect methods to defeat his rival. He used his ROOT to try and assassinate Hiruzen, but sadly his efforts were thwarted by the very person he had recruited and assigned to spy on the Hokage, Kakashi Hatake. And after the whole Uchiha massacre when his rival realised that it was him that orchestrated it, his ROOT was disbanded._

 _Or at least it was Hiruzen's order to do so. Obviously, it wasn't. ROOT was one of his best creations. He knew trusting people who were free to think for themselves was dangerous since they can turn on you any moment. Just like Orochimaru, Kakashi and Itachi. So, he trained his agents to forego all of their emotions. To make them lose everything that can trigger independent thoughts. Along with it, he believed that emotions tended to hinder the work of a Shinobi. He was not completely wrong there. As ninjas, there were many things to be done which would normally be regarded as morally wrong. The act of killing was actually the milder one of them. Such things affected a Shinobi's conscience gravely. But if a person rid himself of everything that connected them with these morals or emotions, he would not be as much affected._

 _But at the same time, a person without any kind of feeling or emotion would be hard pressed to be called human. The fact that Danzo turned full humans into these kinds of half-puppets did not sit well with, well almost anybody. But that was one of Danzo's traits. He did not care what others thought of him or what he does. He only cared about his village and its security. Sadly, even though his intentions were good, the methods he used to fulfil them were not so._

 _So, since he was realistic, he knew that no matter how much he had expanded his ROOT forces, he would not be able to fight off an ambush by his rival's forces. His rival had successfully infiltrated his base before he could get any prior warning. And no matter what he thought of Hiruzen's ideology, it was undeniable that in terms of power he was far behind his rival. Because at the end one does not receive a title like God of Shinobi for nothing. And since everything was below the very village he as well as Hiruzen loved, neither of them could use any explosive methods, for him to flee or for Hiruzen to wrap this up quickly. So, he waited. Waited for his rival to come to him._

 _Eventually he did come. The third shinobi to ever be given the title of God of Shinobi arrived at the room where Danzo was sitting quietly followed by Kakashi, Hiashi and a handful of other Jounins. Hiruzen, no matter how many times he had overlooked Danzo's treacherous actions, was not a fool. He already knew that Danzo was expecting him. He actually was expecting Danzo to know that._

 _"You amassed quite an army for yourself, old friend. What exactly were you planning to do with this many Shinobi's? There aren't any signs of war that I can see." The Third Hokage asked civilly._

 _Danzo hmph-ed though, "You are a fool if you think this temporary peace attained by a measly truce on paper will truly last, Hiruzen. This peace is just the time other villages use to prepare for the next war. You seemed to believe in this farce of a peace, so I took it upon myself to prepare ourselves to protect our village."_

 _Hiruzen though shook his head, "You continue with this rambling all the time Danzo. I know the other villages are using this time to bolster their forces, but that does not allow you to kidnap children from their families and train them to become a meat shield for the village."_

 _"Kidnap them? You are mistaken Hiruzen. These children that I train came here to help these families you talk about gain more rights as Shinobis. And I am training them to be soldiers. Soldiers that would fight for the village." Danzo argued._

 _"For the village or for you? The ones you are calling soldiers are nothing but shells that resemble humans. Puppets that you have the strings to control. Humans who lack the understanding of right or wrong. Who are not fighting because they love the village but because they are told to do so. There is no Will of Fire in them that will drive them to protect the village. So, the question still remains. Do they fight to protect the village or to protect you?" Hiruzen asked._

 _Danzo's expression did not change from his impassive one, "I have always done everything for the-"_

 _Hiruzen cut him off, "Good of the village. Yes, I have heard that many times now. And many of those times I've agreed with you. But more than those times, your deeds while on the surface may have benefitted the village, at the same time has been more detrimental. But you have still not answered my question. Does your ROOT exist to fight for the village or fight for you?"_

 _"They will fight for the village. But not the village that you are leading, Hiruzen. The direction in which you are leading the village will lead to its downfall. I have made the ROOT to protect the village that I have envisioned. To make Konoha the strongest of all villages. To have Konoha rule over the other villages. To actually attain peace." Danzo said._

 _Oddly enough, his rival just nodded, "You have your own way of envisioning the future of Konoha. Sadly, your version of Konoha stands on a bed of millions of corpses. And no matter from which village those corpses belong to I cannot let you do that. I had ordered you to disband your ROOT. I knew you didn't but overlooked it because you were taking care of the dark side of Konoha. But sadly, I cannot let you lead Konoha to this dark future you are talking about anymore."_

 _He took off his Hokage robes to show him wearing his favoured battle gear. Danzo though did not seem keen to fight, "You are again making a mistake, Hiruzen. The ROOT is needed for Konoha as a tree to grow."_

 _"I made a mistake when I decided to spare you when you tried to assassinate me Danzo. That was traitorous enough to get you executed, but I let you go. I will not make that mistake again. Danzo Shimura, you are hereby found guilty of treason, come quietly for your arrest or your execution will be done by me right now." The Hokage declared shocking a few Jounins. But they got ready to attack Danzo or defend the Hokage anyway._

 _Danzo lost his impassive expression and smiled instead, "You just became a better leader Hiruzen. But I cannot let myself be arrested now. Otherwise everything done by the ROOT will be associated with Konoha giving her more enemies." He took off his robe from over his right hand to show three golden braces on his bandaged arm. He had already taken off the bolts holding these braces so once he lowered his arm, the braces fell down leaving only his bandaged arm. He was in the process of taking off those bandages when a Kunai struck him on the head, killing him._

 _The Jounins were shocked to see the Hokage use such tactics. But they along with the Hokage were more shocked to see Danzo's body disappear and reappear a bit to the side of were his dead body should have been._

 _"Again, I will say impressive Hiruzen. You did not let me finish my preparations completely. You are indeed fighting like a real shinobi instead of the idealist you normally are." commented the somehow still alive Danzo. But this time there was no bandage on his right arm. His arm looked paler than the rest of his body but something that surprised the others even more were the nine clearly Sharingan eyes that the arm had with one additional that seemed to be closed along with what looked like a face on his shoulder._

 _Hiruzen was appalled by this, "What have you done? That- that face looks like the First Hokage's."_

 _Danzo actually smirked, "Your student is truly a genius Hiruzen. Sadly, neither did you see his potential beforehand nor is he anymore controllable. The eyes are obviously spoils of a tragedy. These and Hashirama-sensei's cells were used to make this hand." Danzo already knew about the Uchiha massacre since he had engineered most of it. But he still had to keep it a secret from the rest of the populous for the good of Konoha. He was sure he was going to die today, but he was not going to take Konoha with him._

 _"Orochimaru! I knew you were working with him. But to actually take the eyes of the dead Uchihas and to use sensei's cells like that. You are truly despicable Danzo." Hiruzen knew he couldn't give out the specifics of Uchiha massacre either. He didn't bother with anymore words though. Instead he pricked his finger to draw blood, went with a few hand seals and slammed his palm on the ground, "Summoning Jutsu."_

 _A monkey taller than Hiruzen himself appeared in a cloud of smoke, arms crossed. He looked around a bit then locked his eyes on Danzo._

 ** _"So at long last you decided to get rid of Danzo, Hiruzen."_** _He more said than asked._

 _"Unfortunately so Enma." His summoner answered._

 _Monkey King Enma was the Hiruzen's personal summons. He had fought many battles alongside Hiruzen._

 _"You are taking this fight really seriously if you summoned Enma." Danzo commented still not seeming to be overly keen to fight. He was aware that even with all the enhancements made to his body, Hiruzen was far beyond his power to defeat. Add in Jounins like Kakashi and Hiashi, it was impossible here to win for him. Most of his capable ROOT were already engaged in fights against the Shinobis that his rival brought with him. So he was alone. The location also did not favour him much since there was not enough space for him to summon his Baku. His rival had truly got him trapped here._

 _"There would be no fight if you surrender yourself Danzo." Hiruzen replied._

 _"Unfortunately, I cannot just relent like that. This is battle of ideals that I need to fight for." Danzo said._

 _Hiruzen understood, "Hiashi take Kakashi and the others to look for anything that can be used to prove his crime. I will deal with him alone."_

 _Hiashi did not want to leave his Hokage alone like that but since he did not see any other ROOT in the room, he was confident that the Third would win this fight. Similar thoughts ran through the minds of others Jounins. So they complied._

 _After everyone was out the Third nodded to his summon, who transformed into a giant Bo staff. He took the staff under his arms and said, "Come on Danzo, let's fight for our ideals."_

 _"Indeed, let us." Danzo said but still didn't move._

 _The Hokage though felt a strange sensation. He felt he should go easy. He felt like it would be better to let Danzo explain more. But he was jolted awake by a chakra pulse from his staff._

 ** _"Hiruzen, he just tried to cast a Genjutsu on you. A Genjutsu I was hardly able to catch."_** _Enma said still in his Bo staff._

 _The Third nodded, "So you can cast Genjutsus even through those eyes implanted in your arm them. Orochimaru indeed comes up with odd ideas. Sadly those ideas are hardly ever humane."_

 _Danzo shook his head, "I cannot cast Genjutsus through these Sharingans, but the one I tried on you was not a simple Genjutsu." He reached for the bandages hiding his right eye and tore them off. What greeted the Hokage was another Sharingan. The unique pattern on this one was easily recognised by him. The original holder of that eye was someone he thought had committed suicide even though he himself couldn't believe that a competent and level-headed Shinobi like him would do such a thing._

 _"You!" Hiruzen exclaimed in shock, "You were the one who killed Shisui. You took our only chance of pacifying the Uchihas. Danzo, what good did it do to the village, when you took Shisui's eye for yourself and let a whole clan of competent Shinobi die? I knew you had a part in killing the whole clan off, but this is ridiculous."_

 _"You are mistaken Hiruzen. Indeed I took Shisui's eye but I was not the one to kill him. I was only able to take one of his eyes before he fled. Even I don't know what happened to Shisui Uchiha after I took his eye. He was able to outrun my ROOT." Danzo explained._

 _"It doesn't matter if you killed him or not, but you took away the only opportunity we had to calm the Uchiha down and not lose an important asset to the village. Even you should realise that no matter how difficult they were, Uchihas were an important part of the village. So I ask again, you say everything you've done was for the good of Konoha, what good did it do when you decided to annihilate a whole clan, a part of Konoha's military?" The Hokage asked again._

Danzo shrugged, _"The Uchihas were getting too powerful. It is better to have a not have an ally than to have a powerful but untrustworthy ally."_

 _The Hokage was getting outraged, "Danzo your point doesn't have any meaning when you just used all those dead Uchihas' eyes to strengthen yourselves. I cannot think of anyone but you who benefitted from that massacre." Hiruzen said._

 ** _"Hiruzen there is no point in arguing about his past actions. It is better if we finish him now."_** _Enma advised._

 _Following his summons' advice, Hiruzen sped towards his foe. Danzo may not be as strong as Hiruzen but he was powerful in his own right and was able to duck under Hiruzen's Bo sweep._

 _Showing his prowess with the Bo staff, Hiruzen used it as a pivot to turn around and kick Danzo away. As soon as his kick connected and Danzo was sent flying, he did a few hand seals and yelled, "Fire Style: Fire Dragon Jutsu." He blew fire from his mouth which quickly took the shape of a dragon and hit Danzo. He kept the flames going for a few seconds before stopping and saw Danzo's charred body._

 _Again though that body disappeared and he saw Danzo appear to the left of it. He did notice one of the eyes on Danzo's arm close._

 _Danzo may have been Hiruzen's teammate a long time ago, but he still knew him well. He was able to predict many Hiruzen's political moves after all._

 _"So you noticed already. As expected of you Hiruzen. Yes this is an ability granted by the Sharingan on my arms, Izanagi. I can use them to cast Physical Illusions. Illusion on reality itself to negate any damage I take. I can even cheat death with them. As you also have noticed, I can do it only once per eye. This is why I say the Uchihas were getting powerful. While this is a forbidden technique even among the Uchihas, only the fear of blindness stops them from using it. But if they are put in a life and death situation, I believe they would use this without hesitation." Danzo explained._

 _"Indeed it is a very fearsome technique. But for a person with only two eyes, this would be a very dangerous technique to use. And if you say the Uchihas with their two eyes each were getting dangerous. Than by similar logic, you are even more dangerous to be left alive Danzo." Hiruzen argued._

 _Danzo nodded, "At least this time we are seeing eye to eye." He made some hand signs and yelled, "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough." But instead of aiming at Hiruzen, he aimed it towards the debris caused due to the earlier fire jutsu. This resulted in the debris flying towards the Hokage._

 _Unfortunately for Danzo, Hiruzen's main elemental affinity was naturally stronger than his. He blew another Fire Dragon towards the oncoming flying debris. Since his Jutsu was stronger, the Fire Dragon used the wind provided by Danzo's jutsu to power itself and sped towards Danzo, resulting in him again being consumed by the flames._

 _And again like last time, his charred body faded like an illusion and was replaced by another Danzo with three of the ten eyes on his arm closed._

 _Hiruzen was confused though. He knew Danzo was competent enough to have dodged both of his Fire Dragons. But he just took the jutsus head on and relied on using the Sharingan's power to revive himself instead. Even in the beginning he could have easily dodged the kunai he had thrown._

 _"What are you planning here Danzo? I know you could have dodged that Jutsu. Even the Jutsu before it. But you used Izanagi for both of them." He asked._

 _"You give me too much credit, Hiruzen. Or maybe give yourself less. But we are both affected by old age now. Apparently, me more than you." Danzo avoided to answer._

 _Hiruzen knew Danzo was avoiding the question._ 'He may be stalling for time. But I don't think he is stalling for reinforcements. What is he planning?' _He stopped thinking and focused on killing Danzo seven more times. Eight if you counted Shisui's Sharingan, but he would probably not waste that._

 _And so the fight continued where while Hiruzen tried to give his best, Danzo only dodged a few hits and at the end was down to only Shisui's eye. The fight was not long drawn as Danzo didn't seem to have much intent on fighting back, which kind on infuriated Hiruzen._

 _"The Sharingans on your right arm are now useless Danzo. And I don't think you want to waste Shisui's Sharingan like that. So why don't you tell me what you are planning? Old age wouldn't affect you this much." Hiruzen asked._

 _"Unfortunately unlike you I used most of my time using my ROOT Hiruzen. So my old age did affect me. But you are right, I didn't fight seriously. Because it would have no meaning. My ROOT is already destroyed. It's already established that the ROOT are the enemy. I getting out of here alive won't do anything but look bad on Konoha when the news would go out of the village. I cannot have that. The darkness I work in only has enemies Hiruzen, no allies. I will not gain anything by leaving here alive." Danzo said._

 _"Danzo, you are still one of the best strategist I have. If you had agreed to work alongside me, this would have never happened." The Hokage said._

 _Danzo denied it though, "It was necessary for me to bear the darkness that is around the roots while the leaves of Konoha bathed in the sunlight. I purposefully threw this fight away. The others will not find anything in this place. All the reports on the missions I sanctioned are here, sealed on me. I will give them to you, only you Hiruzen. These are not something that should be known by many. So keep them secret as long as it is needed. I'm giving these to you because you will need them to protect Konoha from the external threats. And you will need to keep them secret to protect Konoha from internal ones." He reached for a sealing Tattoo on his left hand and brought out a ledger and threw it on the ground in front of Hiruzen._

 _Hiruzen bent to pick up the ledger when Danzo said, "I hope your vision of Konoha is the right one Saru."_

 _Before Hiruzen could understand what happened, Danzo revealed his chest showing a seal. He made a hand seal and four symbols seemed to come out of his chest forming a sphere of ink like substance. Hiruzen was unable to move during the time it took for the sphere to cover Danzo and then implode._

 _Danzo's body fell, completely black covered in ink. Leaving the ledger there, Hiruzen rushed to Danzo and checked his pulse. It wasn't there. He opened his right eye. It was missing as well. Sealed into his corpse forever never to be seen again._

 _"Danzo, I believe you now. You indeed loved the village. Sadly your love for it led you to do whatever you_ thought _was good for the village. I should have stopped you sooner. Maybe then it would have not ended like this." Hiruzen said to no one. '_ I failed to save another again.'

* * *

 _The fighting outside the strategy room had already ended. While there was some casualty among the Jounins that accompanied the Hokage, it was nothing compared to what ROOT had suffered. Not only did they lose their leader, most of their senior and elite members were taken down. Either killed or captured. And since Danzo had died, the cursed seal on their tongues that Danzo used to prevent any leakage of info disappeared. This would allow Ibiki to get information on any ROOT agent currently outside the village._

 _Sadly, Hiashi and his group didn't find anything substantial in terms of evidence. Abiding to his friends last wish, Hiruzen revealed only enough to incriminate Danzo and kept more serious matters to himself._

 _Many of the chakra signatures that the Senju twins had sensed were actually the other new ROOT trainees. Apparently Danzo's mass recruitment was fairly recent. That was why there were very less loss of life among the Jounins. There were not as many ROOT agents that were capable of fighting them. Especially of the calibre of Kakashi, Guy and Hiashi._

 _Next day the Hokage announced the execution of the Konoha Council member as well as some reasons for it. The main ones were treason against the village, trying to assassinate the Hokage. Of course, just like Danzo had said, there were many who had offered their children willingly for him to train and opposed the Hokage's decision in executing him. But once they were told a few details about the training procedure and how a fully trained ROOT ended up, they shut up._

 _Many children returned to their families, while the ones that wanted to be Shinobis were admitted into the academy. There were older ones whose mental conditioning had already been underway, so it fell upon the ANBU to train them further and try to reverse the conditioning._

 _Speaking of ANBU, Kakashi as the ANBU captain was given the task to weed out planted ROOT agents in the regular ANBU. Thankfully there were only two, who agreed to swear loyalty to the Hokage instead, but still had to go through Ibiki's sessions. The senior ROOT agents all refused to do so. Ibiki was successful in getting information on other ROOT that were in the field, who were quickly tracked down. Sadly they too refused to acknowledge the Hokage as their leader. So they had to be sent to the Blood Prison._

* * *

Hokage's office – Present time

After the Hokage was done telling the tale, while leaving out the details of what transpired between him and Danzo at the end, since till now he had seen no need to disclose such information, Jiraiya sat back soaking everything in.

After some time Jiraiya sighed, "At the end even Danzo was looking for peace. His methods were extremist but at least he had the goal right. Orochimaru on the other hand is completely different."

Hiruzen looked at his student and nodded. After Danzo, Orochimaru was another one of his mistakes that he left unchecked. While he still had done nothing to harm the village directly, by providing the Danzo with that arm and Hashirama's cells, he was nonetheless involved.

He was shocked to hear what his student said next though, "He had joined a group that I've heard is looking for the Bijuus for something. While he left the group soon after, probably because their goals weren't parallel to his, this group's existence itself is terrifying. If it was some group of weak ninjas I wouldn't have paid any mind, but apparently this group consist of 10 S-rank Nuke-nins (Rouge Ninja)."

"That is concerning indeed. This many strong Nuke-nins will not stay together if there was not someone stronger than them leading them. And looking for the Bijuus you say? Do you mean recruit the Jinchuurikis or take the Bijuu?" The Hokage asked.

"No they apparently don't care who the Jinchuuriki is, they just want the Bijuu. Why they want them is still not clear." answered the Toad sage.

"And I guess you are here to protect your God children then?" The Third asked.

Jiraiya hmph-ed, "Protect them? No, I cannot do that all the time. As much as I hate to admit it, they must be able to protect themselves. I am here to make them capable of doing so."

"You think they would be able to gain enough power to rival one or more S-class Shinobis in such a short time?" Hiruzen asked.

Jiraiya shook his head, "I don't exactly know how much time we have, but if you see the power even one of them possess now, you would see that if they fight together, they may be able to take down an S-class Shinobi."

Hokage's eyebrows shot up, "Surely you are jesting. I may have not seen them fight recently, but to be able to win against such a powerful foe? They shouldn't even be Genins then."

"No let them stay where they are. They would need the experience. And while I will train them to be strong enough to fight an S-class Shinobi singlehandedly, I do not exactly want them to do so. It would be better if they are in a squad and accompanied by a Jounin." Jiraiya advised.

The Hokage nodded. Both of their attention was then drawn towards one of the windows to the office, where a crow was pecking the glass.

"It seems it's time to correct another one of my mistakes." said the Hokage confusing his sage student.

* * *

AN:

No Omake on this one sorry, but it didn't seem appropriate. There were indeed many ways I could have made an Omake, but I don't hate Danzo as much as I do Sasuke.

Danzo loved his village. This I have said many times. But it is also true that without Danzo's intervention, there was more of a probability for Yahiko to live and the good Akatsuki to continue. So at the end of the day, Danzo had no less hand in causing the Fourth Shinobi World War than Black Zetsu. And if you read his Wiki (not mine), you would see his actions indeed caused the Third Shinobi World War to uselessly lengthen. So if someone in another fanfic kills him even earlier than I did, the flow of Naruto's story can be completely changed.

Well there's nothing much to say. Do tell me how you liked this chapter. Till the next one.


	14. A Murder of Crows

Okay here is the next chapter. Thank you for your reviews. And sorry for another late update but it seems this is now going to be a norm. It will be better if I take time writing the chapters instead of rushing them. I was actually going to update yesterday but the login server went down.

Well this is a chapter, quite a few of you were probably waiting for. But let's answer some reviews first,

 **Bloody Rogue dragon deity king** and **bloody dragon fang –** Thanks.

 **GunBlade2018 –** You got your answer now.

 **TheWateringWizard –** Exactly.

 **orien213 –** Thank you again for your helpful input. I frankly was confused about that.

 **PikeMew1288 –** Hard to answer since there are many possibilities. But without Danzo moving the Uchihas out of the village, the Uchiha probably would have not been suspected to be the cause of the Kyuubi incident. So the village and the Uchiha wouldn't have any problem with each other, hence no need for the coup. But this is just a maybe. You still have to count Obito's interference there.

Okay, now without further ado, except for this one, **I do not own Naruto,** let's start the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 14: A Murder of Crows

Two weeks had passed since the True Genin exams. Two weeks since Sasuke started his training with his team. He didn't have any problems with his team. On the contrary, he was pleased to have his rival's sister and the silent but logical bug user on his team. Namiko was obviously strong. Apparently stronger- at least in terms of brute strength – than her brother. She was not as level headed as Naruto, but her battle prowess probably rivaled her brother's. And Shino was, well he was there. He may not be that good in hand to hand combat, but his bugs made him a terrifying opponent to fight against, because they could drain his opponent's chakra very fast hence shortening the fights. Also hiding from him was kind of futile since as long as he had a bug on you, he would know where you are. A lot different from a Hyuuga's penetrative vision but still did the same work.

His sensei somehow had a Sharingan, even though he was not an Uchiha. When Sasuke asked him about it, he just got a faraway look on his face - whatever of it was visible - and didn't answer. Sasuke figured it was probably a touchy subject for him, so he didn't push any further. But thanks to that, Kakashi was able to point out, that during some point of his fight between him and Mizuki, he had awakened the Sharingan. It was, Kakashi hypothesized, probably when he thought the giant fuma shuriken was going to kill him. He had not used it in the Bell Test, but during the practice spars after it, he had somehow sub-consciously activated it.

If this was some two weeks ago, he would have thought of it as another step towards killing Itachi. Another of the things that happened two weeks ago made him question that thought. He was told that apparently it was his parents and the clan who were traitors to the village, not Itachi. Itachi apparently did, what he did, to stop the clan from staging a coup. He told the Hokage that he wanted to hear it from Itachi himself. Somewhere in his mind, he thought that the Hokage was lying, no matter how much ridiculous it seemed for him to lie in front of that many people. But he still didn't want to think that his parents were traitors. That thought however was squashed to almost nothing, when the Hokage told him two weeks ago that Itachi was going to arrive in probably a day or two from now. Thus, he now waited for his brother to arrive and finally get some answers.

A sudden knock on his door broke him from his thoughts, but immediately thought back on them when he saw an ANBU behind it.

* * *

In another part of town, Naruto was returning home after a series of three D – Ranked missions. His use of shadow clones allowed his team to finish these missions – read as chores- a lot faster. It would have probably been the same with his sister's team too, if Kakashi was not so lazy. But as it stood, he didn't find much value in these missions besides making the Genins proficient in doing the civilian jobs, to make them capable enough to disguise themselves whenever it was needed. _'Now that I think about it, they actually sound important.'_ He thought.

As for his team, he was satisfied with it. Of course, he would have liked to have his sister or Hinata on his team, but that was just a choice of convenience. He didn't have any problem with Sakura or Kiba. Sakura, as long as kept away from Sasuke, was a good Kunoichi. She had once attempted to copy his – basically his mother's – chakra enhanced strength technique. While she had obviously failed, she was successful enough for his mother to try and teach it to her. Partly to save the girl from breaking her hands and partly to save herself the trouble of repeatedly healing her. Along with that her smaller chakra reserves resulting in great chakra control, allowed her to learn many small to medium scale Genjutsus from their sensei. Additionally, she was continuing her medic training under him as well as, when the time allowed, from Shizune.

Kiba was almost completely opposite to Sakura. His chakra reserves were bigger than her and since his clan jutsus didn't need that much of a precise control, Genjutsu came very difficult to him. But thanks to the slight chakra control he had, along with the help of his partner Akamaru, he was not prone to that many Genjutsus. Additionally his Taijutsu was very good, especially when done in conjunction with his ninken. Though their sensei was currently focusing on training him to be able to fight alone, just in case Akamaru was separated from him.

Kurenai-sensei, unlike Kakashi, was very punctual as well as stern. She was very much focused when she was training somebody. And contrary to the beliefs, she was adept in Taijutsu and Ninjutsu along with being a master of Genjutsu. She just used them less. She tended to focus on training Sakura more though. While it may seem like partiality, in truth it was just her try in ridding Sakura of her fan-girlism, which according to Shizune was a medical ailment.

When he thought of Sakura's feelings towards Sasuke, he was also oddly reminded of Hinata. Hinata's team, after the not-so-minor setback of failing, was now better than it could have been even if it passed. Haku was able to blend in the team very well. As a person who was also trained by a Sannin, he and Anko got along well. Though Anko's sensei ended up betraying her and the village. He was mainly a long-range fighter but was also almost equally proficient in close range, where he relied on speed to fight. His use of senbon needles allowed him to immobilize an enemy very well. Combining him with Sai's support and Hinata's 360 degree fighting abilities made team 11 a very proficient team.

He wondered what Shikamaru's team was doing. Since Haku lived with the Senju's, he was able to get news on both team 7 and 11. But he still had not gotten any chance to talk to his strategist friend.

Said chance was coincidentally provided by a fellow blonde, who was somehow dragging both of her teammates behind her. How she managed to drag the big boned Chouji along with Shikamaru, only she knew.

On seeing Ino come his way, Naruto walked towards her. "Hey, Ino. What, you were shopping for Choujis and Shikamarus today?" He asked her.

"Ohh! Naruto-kun, long time no see. Sadly, I couldn't do any shopping because of these two lard balls I have for teammates. It is hard enough to get them working and after the work is done they immediately return to being lard balls. And our sensei's laid-back attitude doesn't help either." Ino complained.

Naruto sweat dropped. It seemed among the four Jounins who got teams this year, only two, who were both females, were actively doing their job, while both their male counterparts were content on taking it easy instead.

Meanwhile Chouji got back on his feet after Ino stooped dragging them. Shikamaru didn't bother to do even that. Naruto's sweat drop increased.

Ino followed Naruto's line of sight and immediately growled, "Shikamaru! At least show some decency, this is a street for god's sake. Get up!"

Shikamaru grumbled but followed her order anyway. It was better to get up than listen to her nagging.

"Being a Genin didn't change you much I see, eh Shika." Naruto said after Shikamaru stood up.

"I don't know about that, but it definitely has become more troublesome. Especially with Ino here." He replied which was answered by a, "What did you say!?" by Ino. "See what I mean?" He added.

"Man, I wish I got someone like Hinata on my team. I wouldn't have to hear someone nag me all the time." He sighed.

"You only say that because you don't know Hinata that much. Believe me, even though she doesn't like how her father used to train her before, she is as strict as her father when it comes to training. Determined as well. Instead of nagging like Ino does, she would just Jyuuken you till you get up." Naruto clarified.

Shikamaru smirked at him, "Yeah, you would know." Ino's defensive, 'Hey! I don't nag' was ignored by both of them.

Instead of taking the bait, Naruto dismissed it by saying, "No, Namiko and Sakura are more intimately informed about that." Distracted by the sound of Chouji opening his bag of chips, he refocused on Shikamaru to ask, "Well where were you being dragged to? Seeing as neither you nor Chouji looked interested in going, it was probably not home or to eat."

Shikamaru nodded, "Apparently Ino is short on her mission gear, so she was going for shopping."

Naruto sweat dropped again, "Short on mission gear? You had to use your mission gears for D – rank missions?"

Shikamaru shrugged, "Obviously not. I still haven't used a single kunai in my missions, except for when we are training."

Ino decided she wouldn't take any more of their ignorance, "Ha! Training? You? Come on, Shikamaru after the True Genin test you have only trained once, and you forfeited immediately after sensei went out of your reach. At least Chouji is better in that regards, he just doesn't want to hurt anybody."

On hearing this Naruto turned to Chouji, "You are still afraid of that Chouji? Come on you must know it is still a far cry for us to even come close to hurting our senseis while training. They are Jounins."

Shikamaru snorted, "No one wants to hear that from a guy who fought a Jounin to a standstill."

Naruto was shocked, "What are you talking about?"

"Asuma-sensei told us how you were able to fight Kurenai-sensei toe to toe." Shikamaru answered.

"What? That was a simple spar and Kurenai-sensei was holding back while I was trying my hardest. Even then I couldn't land a single hit on her. The fight just lasted a bit longer and since I have naturally higher reserves of chakra, it came down to how much chakra both of us had left. But the amount of chakra alone doesn't decide the strength of a ninja. What matters most is experience, and in that regard, we still have none." Naruto explained

Shikamaru nodded at the explanation. "Even then, if you were not strong, she could have taken you out during the fight. The fact that you were able to turn the fight into a battle of attrition goes to show how strong you are."

Naruto shrugged, "Maybe, but we were not talking about me, we were talking about Chouji. Chouji you used to fight against my shadow clones very well. So, what's the problem in fighting your sensei in a spar? If you are afraid you would hurt him or your teammates, just remember this, you may hurt your teammates while training, but if you hesitate to fight when it counts, your teammates will definitely be hurt."

Chouji nodded, "Asuma-sensei told me the same thing, but I cannot just bring myself to fight him, Shikamaru or Ino, or even you. Your Shadow clones were different. I knew they were not you and hurting them wouldn't hurt you, so I didn't have any problem fighting them. I just cannot think of hurting any of my friends."

Naruto nodded, "That's good. You don't need to think about hurting your friends either. Just keep in mind that you do not want them to be hurt. So be prepared enough so that when time comes where your friends might be hurt by others, you can save them."

Chouji meekly nodded. Shikamaru observed this conversation before saying, "You really are a natural born leader Naruto."

Naruto grinned at him, "And you are an inherently born slacker. Seriously Shika, get that slack off a little and I'm sure you and Chouji can become great ninjas."

Ino pouted, "Hey! What about me? I'm the one doing most of the work here."

Naruto turned his grinning face towards her, "Ino if you can get the current Shikamaru and Chouji to train, then you are already a great ninja. If you can make them put even more effort, I think you would have the most chance of becoming the Hokage."

Ino blushed while Shikamaru snorted, "If that was the case my mom would have already become the Hokage." Ino didn't pay him mind though. Oh, how much she wanted to be in Hinata's place when she started the academy and first saw Naruto. Unfortunately for her, his attention was already on Hinata by then. So, she decided to not butt in there and try someone else. Sadly, her affections turned towards a person who didn't seem interested in forming bonds at all. But she thought it was still better than to try and break someone else's. So, she stuck to it. Obviously, she is still just that, stuck. Thankfully Sasuke was not Namiko's type, because if she knew anything about Sasuke, she knew that Namiko would definitely fit his type, if there was any. Then there was the horde of competition among which was her former best friend and current rival.

She was snapped out her daze when she saw both Shikamaru and Chouji walking towards their homes. Getting a tick mark on her forehead, she apologized to Naruto for suddenly taking a leave and chased after them to catch and bring them to the clothing shop with her.

Naruto stood there looking amused and watched her do just that. He shook his head before continuing his journey to his own home. His sister was already home it seemed and since Kakashi cannot be early, they probably got the day off or something.

* * *

Naruto reached home to his sister complaining about the D- rank missions to the two male members of team 11. Apparently Haku had taken it upon himself to break Sai out of his mental conditioning. "Without any emotions, you become like a weapon or a tool, instead of a Human." he said. So while Hinata was trying to teach him what was right and wrong to do in front of people, Haku was making him interact with different outgoing people, to have him observe them and learn from them. Naruto chuckled at that, _'He should probably introduce him to Ino then.'_

As soon as he announced his arrival, he was bombarded with the same complaints he had been hearing from his sister since last two weeks. At least this time, he had two other people sharing his predicament. But there was one thing that repeatedly came up during her complaints that drew his attention and that was, 'Sasuke was acting weird.' He had asked her to elaborate it more to which she replied that he was, at times, acting like he wanted to mingle and then suddenly started to space out. Naruto theorized it probably had something to do with the big revelation that happened on the graduation day. Old man Hokage had said that he would contact Sasuke's brother, but so far Naruto hadn't got any word of it.

As if heard by some higher power, the door to their house was knocked, whose answering revealed an ANBU requesting Naruto to show up at Hokage's office. Since it was Naruto who was being called to the Hokage's office and not team 8, Namiko requested to tag along. Since the ANBU was not given any specifics about others tagging along, he just shrugged. So leaving the Senju Compound, and Sai, to Haku, they followed the ANBU.

* * *

Hokage's office

The Hokage was not surprised when instead of just Naruto, Namiko also arrived at his office. She was Naruto's shadow as long as they were not on missions. Tsunade was actually hoping to break her out of that habit. So far she was unsuccessful. It didn't help that Naruto wouldn't berate her at all. Well she already knew what was going to happen, so there was no harm in her being there.

He motioned for his ANBU guards to leave him after which he started, "I think you three already know what I've called you here for. He is here to answer the questions Sasuke has. It was originally going to be just me, Sasuke and him. But apparently Sasuke wants Naruto to be there for some reason." He looked at Namiko and continued, "There seems to be one more than arranged, but I'll let it slide only because you already know the purpose of this meeting." Namiko had enough decency to look bashful.

"So is he going to come here?" Sasuke asked. He was still having mixed emotions. For four years, he had hated his brother, believing that he did everything to just test his power. But he was also oddly happy that he was going to to see his brother after that many years. He was also nervous to find out the answers to that night. What would he feel if what Hokage said was true? What would he feel if it wasn't? So it was safe to say that the most intense of his feelings was anxiety.

Hokage shook his head, "That would be very dangerous. No matter what I know about Itachi, to the village he is still a criminal. Just waltzing in the village will raise all kinds of alarms. No, we are meeting him somewhere that apparently should be known by you Sasuke."

The only present Uchiha looked surprised. For a good reason too. How was he supposed to know where Itachi would meet them? He didn't get any message or anything.

"But I didn't get anything from Itachi or anyone that may tell us where to meet." Sasuke said.

The Third nodded, "Yes I know. His message told me to accompany you to where the 'Secrets to your Eyes' lay."

Sasuke's surprised expression changed to that of revelation. He immediately understood where the place was.

He nodded, "Yes. I know that place."

"Well then, we mustn't waste any time. Let's go to this place then." Said the Hokage while standing up from his place.

Sasuke turned to the door to leave followed by the Senju twins and the Hokage to go to where Itachi waited.

* * *

Naka Shrine

The place, from the outside, looked like a normal shrine. But the meeting between the rouge Uchiha and the rest was not taking place quite there. The place that they were in, was hidden by a secret entrance, under the 7th tatami mat from the far right. Sasuke knew about this place. It was actually Itachi who had told him about this secret place, so he was the one who lead the rest inside.

There was a stone tablet there, with scribbles of something written on it, which none of the occupants could make heads or tails off, except for the only two in the room gifted with special eyes. Said two people had not taken their red eyes off each other since they had met. That was quite some time ago, they had still to say anything to each other. The other three, including the Hokage and the Senju twins, were unnerved by the continuous silence but also weren't eager to break it.

It was at last broken by Sasuke, who said in a very low voice, "Itachi!"

"Greetings little brother." was the answer he got from Itachi. Itachi Uchiha looked very identical to his younger brother, except his hair at the back was in a ponytail and there were tear-troughs under his eyes. While the light in the room was very minimum, supplied only by two fire torches besides the stone tablet, Itachi's clothing was still visible enough to notice that he was wearing a black cloak which had red cloud-like pattern on it.

"Itachi! Tell me. Tell me why did our clan decide to stage the coup?" Sasuke asked.

Everyone including Itachi were surprised by his question. Not that they didn't expect it, but they were expecting it after a few questions like 'Was the Hokage really telling the truth?' and such. The way he asked the question felt like he had already accepted what the Hokage had told him. Itachi asked him exactly that.

"I'm surprised you would ask something like that first Sasuke. I thought you didn't believe what Hokage-sama told you. What changed?" Itachi asked in a calm almost emotionless manner.

Sasuke calmed down a little before answering, "The fact that you are here already proves that whatever he said was true. Also there was a lot of audience that day for him to lie. I already figured out that day that it was our clan that turned on the village first. Whatever doubt I had about him lying were resolved when I saw you."

Itachi nodded. At the very least he was able to think clearly. When the Hokage told him that he had to reveal the secret to Sasuke through his letter, he became worried that Sasuke wouldn't be able to handle it. He was glad he was wrong.

"I know you have been told this before, but it was indeed our clans own actions that led to its downfall. They had decided that the village was not treating them the way it should have. So they decided to use force to take back what they thought was theirs." Itachi explained.

Sasuke didn't look satisfied though. He already knew about those things. But he wanted to know what drove his clan to try a coup against a whole village instead of simple negotiations. "But why?" He asked.

"Pride. Pride and Greed." Itachi answered.

Sasuke was surprised. Greed, he could understand was a bad thing. But shinobis were supposed to have pride right?

Before he could question it, Itachi elaborated, "Our clan thought that just because we helped build the village, it should respect us. Because we have the Sharingan, we are powerful. But that's incorrect. Our clan may have helped build the village, but that was decades ago. People from now are different than the people from then. What our clan did in the past doesn't matter to the current populace. They only respect those who have earned it. It probably wouldn't have mattered to our clan. But that's were Greed come in. Danzo was able to manipulate the people of our clan as well as the villagers to distrust each other. Sadly both fell victim to his manipulations and the Uchiha police force started to fight back the civilians, causing a rift to form between the village and our clan. He then used this rift to back our clan into a corner. To get out of that corner, the clan planned the coup."

Sasuke grinded his teeth and tightened his fists. Danzo Shimura. That name seemed to be connected to every misshape that happened to the village. He was really wishing he was alive so that he could kill him himself. But unfortunately for him, and fortunately for the village, he was dead. And Sasuke had more questions to ask too. So he calmed himself down again and asked, "Did Tou-san and Kaa-san support the plan too?"

Itachi was conflicted to answer that one. He knew that his mother was against the plan but went with it to support her husband. So was his father actually. This was something only he and his father knew about. His father had told him about it before that night. The clan had originally planned to use the power of the Sharingan to release the Kyuubi on the village from Naruto or Namiko, preferably both. But his father had pacified the clan by saying that only some special Mangekyou Sharingans could perform such feat, even when he knew his own Mangekyou could do it. Even Itachi was shocked to see his father wielding a Mangekyou.

His father also wanted to improve his clan's standing in the village. But at the same time he respected the Fourth Hokage. And his wife was a friend of Kushina Uzumaki, Fourth's wife and Naruto and Namiko's mother. He could not sacrifice those two, when they didn't have anything to do with his clan. Also while he could probably have controlled the Kyuubi, even he didn't know for how long. And if he couldn't control it, not only would the clan have been destroyed, the village would have too. And Fugaku wanted to improve his clan's standing IN the village, it would be of no meaning if neither the clan nor the village remained.

Itachi could not say this in front of Naruto or Namiko. He also didn't exactly know what Sasuke will do after this was all over. But he could at least tell him about mother. "No, mother was against all of this, but she supported her husband. Otherwise the clan head would look weak and father may have lost his position. And another clan head could have planned something even more drastic. Sadly father was the one to suggest the plan." _'I'm sorry father, but you have to be the villain for a little while longer.'_ He apologised to his father in his mind.

Sasuke was at least happy to hear that his mother was originally against this suicidal plan. While he thought his father supported the plan, the fact that he was the one who suggested it did not sit well with him. He still had a few more questions though.

"Why did you have to kill everyone then? Wouldn't killing the ones who were in on the plan had been enough?" This question was not asked by Sasuke, instead by Naruto, who was standing silently till that moment.

Naruto already knew the answer to his question. But he wanted to know if every person was actually killed by Itachi or not. Not matter how strong Itachi may have been at that time, killing a whole clan, whose at least 30% of the population were gifted with eyes that could predict movements of their opponents, was something that should have been out of even his skillset.

Itachi shook his head, "Unfortunately, I was not the one to kill everyone in the clan." He said surprising everyone, even the Hokage. That was news to even him.

Before anyone could interrupt, Itachi continued, "When I was ordered by Danzo to kill everyone behind the plan, I already knew I wasn't strong enough to pull something like that off. Before I could start the mission, I was approached by another individual who offered to share my work. I obviously denied him, since it was my mission and it was not something that people out of the village should know about. And since he was practically an intruder, I decided to apprehend him, as he seemed to know sensitive information about the village. I was unfortunately unable to defeat him." He paused to let everyone take everything in. This was the first time he was narrating to someone of what actually happened. He knew who that person was, at least who he was pretending to be. He still had no idea who was behind that mask.

Seeing Sasuke trying to say something, he resumed, "No matter what attack I used, it went through him, like he wasn't there. But he could still hit me when he wanted to. Seeing no choice I decided to let him accompany me. Obviously he went behind my back and killed every Uchiha instead of only the plotters. I wasn't able to stop him. He had already demonstrated that he was capable enough to do it by himself. Seeing how dangerous this person was I decided to join the organization that he was in, to keep an eye on him."

Everyone was still reeling from the shock that Itachi wasn't the one to kill the whole clan. Finally the Hokage was the one to snap out first, "Itachi, why didn't you tell me this before? This would mean that someone out of Konoha knows this secret."

Itachi nodded, "Unfortunately Hokage-sama, he is not the only one outside Konoha who knows the truth about that night. Even till this date I don't know how they are aware of it. The only thing I can think of is that Danzo was colluding with these people to get rid of the Uchihas, but this is just a speculation."

 _'No Danzo may have done many things to get the Hokage seat, but he would never give out village secrets to someone who can be a threat to Konoha. There was nothing mentioning another person in his notes either. This is someone else and somehow knows village's secrets. Was it Orochimaru? Since Danzo got his arm from him, it is possible that Orochimaru knows about the Uchiha Massacre. And if this person knows about it, what else does he know then?'_ The Hokage thought fervently. After Danzo, Orochimaru was another one of his mistakes.

Sasuke was shaking with rage. He blamed the wrong person all these years. His brother was not the one to kill the whole clan, it was someone else. He so much wanted to kill this person right now. He also saw the truth though. If Itachi was no match for him 4 years ago, and seeing that he was still working in his organization, he still wasn't, then he didn't stand a chance. Instead it would give Itachi out.

Naruto was on a completely different track here though. _'Just as I thought, he did not kill everyone.'_ He looked at Sasuke's still shaking form, _'What would you do now Sasuke?'_

Sasuke managed to ask with gritted teeth, "Where is he now?"

Itachi, already seeing where this was going, said, "You do not need to concern yourself with him Sasuke. I am keeping an eye on him. You focus on your training." He walked closer to Sasuke and tentatively put his hands on his shoulder, "You remember what I told you on that night Sasuke, about getting stronger?"

Sasuke looked up at his brother and nodded, so Itachi continued, "I told you that so you will hate me instead of the village and someday kill me, so I could get my salvation." He said surprising Sasuke. "But that isn't needed anymore. You can still hate me if you want, but I shall tell you one important thing. A true Uchiha's power comes from the love they have for their family, friends and comrades. Sure it is painful to lose someone you hold dear, but instead of hating the person who took them from you and getting strong using that hate, you should get stronger to not let it happen again to anyone else instead. You should get stronger to protect your friends so they don't get harmed, instead of getting stronger to avenge them."

Sasuke was shocked even more. He looked back at Naruto, who was grinning at him. He turned back to his brother who had already taken a step back. _'It seems you were right after all, Naruto.'_

The Hokage was happy to see these two brothers re-unite. But his mind was still occupied by the unknown person responsible for killing the majority of the Uchiha clan.

Itachi looked at his younger brother's expression, pleased to see no signs of hatred on it. He was now surer that the next generation of Uchiha will be free of the Curse of Hatred. "You are free to choose how you want live your life, Sasuke. But I suggest you try to fill it with love instead of hate."

Sasuke was on the edge of crying but held back and nodded.

Itachi nodded back, "Well then if this is done, I should better leave. But there is something I want to talk to Hokage-sama. So you three should leave now."

Sasuke wanted him to stay in the village. But he knew, for that to happen, he had to be pardoned from his crime, which could not be done unless the village was told the truth. But if the village knew that the Uchihas had planned a coup then it would create new problems. Besides that, there was also this mysterious person who killed the rest of the clan. Itachi was needed there to keep a check on him. So he moved to leave, but was stopped by Itachi, "Sasuke, there will be someone here in a few days, who will teach you how to use your Sharingan properly. They can do it even better than me, I think"

Sasuke was confused on who it could be since the only person with Sharingan other than him and his brother was his sensei. But he thought he will wait for whoever it was. So he nodded and left.

Naruto and Namiko seeing that there was no reason for them to stick around bowed to Itachi as well as the Hokage and followed Sasuke out.

As soon as the doorway to the secret room closed, Itachi turned to the Hokage and said, "The Senju twins along with the whole shinobi world are in danger."

* * *

AN:

Well there you go, A Murder of Crows. If you imagine the Uchiha like crows, that title really sticks. This time I really couldn't think of anything for the Omake, without portraying the Third Hokage or Itachi as villains. And Omake or not I really do not want to go to some really darker aspects. Maybe when it's needed.

Not much drama as you would have imagined between Itachi and Sasuke, mainly because Sasuke here is different than the canon Sasuke. Obviously the fact that Itachi was not the one to kill everybody calmed him down, as well as gave him a new target. Thankfully this time, there will be someone to stop him from going all 'I am revenge incarnate'. Who will that be though? Well that is for me to know now and you to know when the time comes. Naruto and Namiko didn't play a big role in this chapter. I know Sasuke specifically called Naruto, but that was just for emotional support.

Well, till the next Chapter. Tschüss.


	15. It's been a long time

Just like the name of the chapter, it's been quite some time.

Just if you are wondering, no I'm not dropping the story. Just got busy with studying and looking around Germany.

Well anyway, this is the last filler kind of chapter. I'm sure you are kind of fed up of it. So things will get serious from the next.

Time to answer some reviews,

 **Bloody Rogue dragon deity king:** I'm glad you liked it.

 **TheWateringWizard:** All in good time.

 **xhope14x:** I won't call what I do in my chapters as bashing, since I only did those in the Omake's and technically never in the real story. But you are right I shall add that in the summary. For the longer chapters though, it's just that I tend to keep it as long as it needs to be. Chapters which have lot's of contents are long, but now I'm planning to make them in parts to keep some consistency in the chapter length.

 **GunBlade2018:** Thankzz.

 **PikeMew1288:** I'm sorry there haven't been any Omake's since a few chapters. Neither does this one. But they will be there, when there is something in the chapter that I can bend enough to make one. Thank you for your support.

 **Guest1:** First of all, I don't know who you are, since you are a guest. But it's okay. As for me making up my mind, where you say and I quote _'Make up your mind dude. Twice now you said that Sasuke and Sakura were dead. Yet they're alive. Make up you're mind.'_ Please take some time and read the chapter thoroughly and look up the meaning of "OMAKE" in Google.

 **Guest2:** Again sorry I don't know who you are. But that is exactly my point actually. They are kind of plot bunnies that hop around in my head. I may some day pick up on them and make them into different fanfictions. But till then any and everyone is allowed to take those if they want to and include in their stories.

Now there is a poll I want to hold. While I do have some idea on who to pair Rock Lee with, I would like to know your opinion on it. I'm keeping it free to be any girl as long as:

1) She is from Naruto universe, no matter filler or canon.

2) She is not a gender bended character. So no female cousin of Maito Gai.

3) There is at least some semblance of why you are suggesting her.

This shouldn't come as a spoiler, but I was planning to pair him up with Tenten, because she is the only one who can literally bear his 'Youthfulness'.

Enough of that and this, **Naruto doesn't belong to me,** and on with the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 15: It's been a long time

It had been a few days since Sasuke got to talk to his brother. Things seemed to have become better for the not-anymore last loyal Uchiha. At least on the surface. He still wanted to get revenge on the guy who killed his clan. But he was also aware of how hard that would be. So he had decided to, again, follow his brother's advice and not let his hate consume him.

But unfortunately, Hate was not a tangible person he could just ignore or defeat with sheer strength. It was an emotion, deeply rooted in human conscience. This hatred had the tendency to surface now and then, sometime it brought other emotions like envy along with it. These now-and –then-s were normally when he was either defeated by his rival's sister- she was indeed very strong- or when he saw them mingle with each other as proper siblings.

To curb at least this feeling of envy, he started to try and socialize with people surrounding him. He was, to an extent, successful in doing so. But he found, for some reason, that the only person he was truly able to be friends with was Naruto. He chalked it up as lack in practice when he couldn't do so readily with others.

Thankfully, his brother was a genius at a level far higher than him. Which was why, Itachi knew even way back when he had decided to spare his brother on that night that he had to do something to bring his brother back from the darkness that Sasuke would be left with after he kills him. Though he didn't have any plans of dying anymore, he still regarded his choice that night to be the right one.

That very choice was currently making its way towards the Hidden Leaf village. Covered by a grey full body cloak from head to toe, it was impossible to even discern what gender the person was.

* * *

Village gates

Contrary to the popular belief, Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane were promoted to Chunins fairly recently. But it was indeed true that since their promotion, they had spent most of their time guarding the gates of the village. Like any other shinobis, except the Naras, they also wished for a more exciting mission. But they would never wish it at the cost of their village's security. So even if guarding the gates was a boring job, they did it with most seriousness. Most of the time.

Currently only Izumo seemed to be doing his job, while his partner was off in the dreamlands while drooling on the table. Izumo sighed. He really did wish for a more exciting mission. But getting paid while being in the village was not bad either. It's just that he had to deal with many troublesome characters now and then. He looked at his partner and sighed again before putting his sights on the road that led out of the village, or in, depending on your position.

Instead of his eyes meeting the empty road though, he was greeted by the sight of a cloaked person walking towards the village. During his time as a gate guard, he had seen people wearing all different kinds of attire. A cloak was no exception. But this one seemed to give him a suspicious feeling. The way the cloak hid every feature of the person was very suspicious indeed. The sun was not shining hard enough to have to cover yourself as much as this person seemed to have.

So Izumo decided to wake his partner up, "Kotetsu, Wake up! There's someone heading towards the village."

He was somewhat successful. Kotetsu did wake up but went right back to sleep after saying, "Izumo we are guarding the gate, someone always comes."

Izumo got a tick mark on his forehead. He bonked his partner on the head before whispering, albeit heavily, "This guy is really suspicious. Wake up! We need to be ready."

Kotetsu begrudgingly did so. He did went on alert after confirming what his partner was saying. This person did look quite shady.

They waited for the person to reach them before Izumo said, "Halt! Show us who you are and state your business in the village." While Izumo was doing that, Kotetsu was ready to attack if needed.

The figure stopped and turned towards them. For a few moments it didn't do anything, making the gate guards tense, before reaching up for the hood covering their face and pulling it back.

Izumo and Kotetsu were taken aback by the beautiful, clearly feminine, face that greeted them from behind that hood. It was a face of a girl of around 17 to 18 years of age. Her face was framed on either side by bangs of her brown hair which went past her shoulders. It was accentuated with a beauty mark under the right one of her onyx eyes.

Getting a hold of themselves, since gender did not matter when it came to the protection of the village, Izumo repeated his question, "State your name and business in the village."

The girl looked at them calmly for a while before smiling and said, "I am Izumi. I have just come here to visit this village I've so much heard about." She put a finger to her lips and added suggestively, "And maybe fined someone suitable to settle down with."

Both the gate guards were flustered by her answer before Izumo continued, "R-right. So please register yourself here." He pointed to the register in front of him. Izumi did as was told, all the while with a sly smile on her face.

Once she was finished she looked up at Izumo with an innocent expression and asked, "Now can I go in?"

Izumo still flustered answered, "R-right. Enjoy your stay."

Izumi smiled before heading into the village.

Izumo breathed a sigh after she was gone. He looked at Kotetsu, who looked like he was contemplating something while looking in the direction Izumi went. "What's the matter?"

Kotetsu looked at his friend and said, "I think I've seen her somewhere before."

Izumo looked at his friend confusingly, thinking where could he have seen her, before grinning, "I don't think that lame pick up like will work with her. You should try and come up with something better."

Kotetsu looked abashed, "What? I'm serious here. I really think I've seen her before. In the village even."

Izumo didn't seem to believe him, "And I'm telling you no matter how serious you look, that pick up line is just lame and old. Besides, she seemed to be really interested in me."

Kotetsu gave him a challenging look, "Oh yeah! Just because you were the one who registered her doesn't mean she was interested in you. She probably knew you had no experience with women and was teasing you."

Izumo glared him, "Oh yeah! But at least she knows me now. She didn't even look at you."

And like that their argument continued. Kotetsu's query long forgotten.

* * *

Leaving the gate guards behind, Izumi continued to stroll through the village. However she wasn't able to decide where to head first. Should she go to the Hokage first? Or should she go look for the the person she came here for? After some thinking, she came to the conclusion that he would probably be hard to find in the village, so she'd rather just go to the Hokage and ask him where to find him. Her destination now decided, she walked a bit faster towards the huge building marked with a giant kanji of 'fire'.

* * *

Meanwhile around one of the training grounds

Today, Team 8 was given the infamous mission of catching Tora. The pet cat of fire Daimyo's wife, Madam Shijimi. Apparently it had a habit of fleeing from the clutches of its master and somehow end up in the village of Konoha, even though the capital of fire country was nowhere near the village.

Fortunately for the village, that one repetitive mission brought a lot of money, even though it was a mere D-rank. Unfortunately for the Genin, the cat, in its long history of escapades, had proven itself to be a master escape artist. Where most Genins did at least two to three D-rank missions per day, catching Tora proved to be difficult enough to take all of their time.

Again, fortunately for Team 8, they had more than one means of tracking. While Naruto could sense chakra, it was difficult to do so for a house cat, who had very little amount it. Still he was able to give a general direction to Kiba, whose sense of smell helped them the most, along with Akamaru's own senses to locate his natural enemy.

Currently all three of the genin and a ninken of Team 8 were scattered around a clearing, looking for the best chance to catch their prey.

"This is future Hokage, target in sight. Man it sounded so cool!" a voice was heard over the radio.

"Fangirl in position too. Next time I'm choosing the names!" exclaimed another clearly feminine voice.

A sigh was then heard over the signal, followed by, "Siscon ready as well. I still don't know why we needed to assign code-names to catch a cat."

It was quite obvious who came up with the names. Kurenai was also listening to the channel, trying to stop herself from laughing.

At some signal from Kiba, Akamaru jumped out of the bushes in front of the cat, which hissed on seeing him, then promptly turned to run in the opposite direction. Kiba was already waiting on that side to catch it. Sadly for him, the cat jumped up, clawing his face while at the same time using it as a springboard to jump further. Already in the air, Tora was unable to change direction when it saw it was directly heading towards the waiting arms of Sakura, who promptly snatched the escapee out of the air and immediately started petting it, to calm it down. It did seem to work as after some time, it started purring and settled closer to her.

Naruto leapt down from a tree and relayed over the radio, "Mission accomplished. Target captured."

"Confirm Identity." came Kurenai's voice over the radio.

"Brown fur, with a red ribbon on the left ear. It's not like it looks any different from the last two times though." answered Naruto clearly a slightly annoyed. From the cat or his code-name given to him by Kiba or some other reason, no one except him knew.

"Confirmed. Meet you on the way to the Hokage's office." Kurenai said before cutting connection.

Naruto turned towards his teammates, taking some time to savour the sight of Kiba rolling on the ground holding his face in pain, before saying, "Come on, let's get this cat to its owner."

"Senpai, it's a she you know." Sakura complained.

Kiba was the one who replied to that while still sitting on the ground, "Yeah, it's a she alright. A She-devil that is." Akamaru whined beside him.

"Kiba, you of all people shouldn't insult intelligent animals like her. What if someone calls Akamaru a demon just because he can walk up on straight walls? Which, might I add, you still cannot do correctly." Naruto said immediately changing the pronoun for Tora and taking a jab at Kiba's lack of chakra control.

Kiba just growled at him.

* * *

On the way to the Hokage tower, they met up with their Jounin sensei.

"Ne, Sensei, when can we go on more exciting missions, where we can really show off our skills?" Kiba asked.

"When I believe you have enough skills to show off. Right now, you are bleeding after capturing a single cat. And this is not the first time either." Kurenai told her genin, getting a few chuckles from Naruto and Sakura, whom Kiba glared at. Kurenai giggled a bit herself.

"Well jokes aside, missions outside the village are not simply about showing off your strength. Most of the missions Genins get outside the village are escort type missions, where you are supposed to guard an important figure from bandits and such. Not only the life of people we are escorting depends upon us, so does the reputation of our village along with our own lives. And not every mission go how they are defined on the file. You have to be ready for all kinds of dangers. And I'm not letting you go on those types of mission, unless I feel you are ready." Kurenai added more seriously. All of her genins nodded.

Naruto, not wanting to stay in serious mood, said, "Well next time we have to do this mission, we are not assigning code-names anymore."

Kiba smirked at him, "You are just irked that I picked the Future Hokage one, or is it because I picked the best one for you?" He ended slyly.

He was bonked on the head by Sakura, somehow still holding the cat, "Next time I'm picking the names. And I'll pick them better than you!"

Naruto retorted to her yelling, "Sakura, ' ' isn't a good name either. This mission aside, it is more liable to give our identity out." Seeing Kiba smirk at the embarrassed Sakura, Naruto added, "Well 'Future Hokage' was even worse, since it directly gave away which village we are from. At least 'Mrs. Uchiha' can be anybody who fantasize of being with Sasuke. I personally know someone not from the village, who is equally interested in him."

This brought a fire in Sakura's eyes. _'Even bitches from out of the village are after Sasuke-kun? But they will never be able to get him fro-'_ Her internal rant was broken by a fist on her head by Kurenai, who glared at her, "You just thought 'No one could take him away from me' didn't you? Haven't I told you to keep your fantasies away when we are on a mission?"

"Ne, Kurenai-sensei, we have already completed the mission. It's officially time for her to try and bag Sasuke, right?" Naruto defended Sakura. Now that Sasuke was out of his 'I'm an Avenger' mode, he thought someone who was as devoted to him as Sakura would be a good way to help him return to his previous attitude. Sakura meanwhile had stars in her eyes.

"Just because you don't give any outward appearance, doesn't mean I don't know what goes in your head and for whom, young man." Kurenai said making Naruto duck his head in embarrassment.

Kiba fell on the ground laughing while holding his stomach. For once he was not at that end of Kurenai's scolding. Except for the cat scratching his face, today was going great for him.

* * *

Hokage's Office

It turned out, that the Hokage was in a meeting with an important individual, which made team 8 stand and wait outside. Though, for someone to be more important than Madam Shijimi's cat, it had to be a bigshot. Apparently, even Madam Shijimi was running late because of a rather lengthy shopping trip.

At that time, the reason for the longer than normal shopping trip walked towards the Hokage's office along with her team and the very person whose cat was in Sakura's hands. Ino was leading the group while chatting with the Fire Daimyo's wife, while the male part of the team including Asuma, along with two of Madam Shijimi's handlers were carrying tons of shopping bags.

 _'Next time there is a mission with shopping involved, I'm rejecting it, no matter what rank.'_ Thought Asuma vehemently.

Team 8 sweatdropped on seeing them. Even Kurenai and Sakura were wondering, how a person, who literally had everything, can still shop so much.

As soon as Madam Shijimi's sight fell upon her cat in Sakura's hands, who was already trembling with terror, she darted towards her at a speed that should not have been achievable by someone who was not a ninja and swiped it from her hands and followed up by squeezing the cat to her. The others, including the handlers, got mixed feelings for the cat. Sorry, for it being in that position, also glad that it was getting its payback for tormenting them.

After she was done trying to kill Tora by squeezing, the Fire Daimyo's wife looked at the team who had brought it back. When she noticed Naruto and she turned towards him, "Ara, its Naruto-kun. Thank you for bringing my Tora back to me again."

Naruto bowed to her, "It was our pleasure." Only Naruto's calm nature allowed him to hide the sarcasm in his statement. Ino and Chouji though were shocked to know that the Fire Daimyo's wife knew Naruto by first name, while anybody could probably guess why Shikamaru wasn't.

They were interrupted by the Hokage's office door opening, from which a beautiful girl with brown hair came strolling outside. Asuma and Kurenai noticed her rather shabby appearance with the cloak and all. But her face was what got their attention. She seemed to be familiar to them. Before they could ask though she excused herself and walked away.

Madam Shijimi, not caring about the shabby looking girl, walked into the Hokage's office. The genin not understanding the looks on their senseis' faces shrugged and followed her, along with the handlers. Both the Jounins seeing they were left behind followed into the office as well before closing the door.

The Hokage was already notified of the presence of Team 8 along with the cat Tora, but Madam Shijimi's as well as Team 10's appearance did surprise him a little. But it was better this way, since both the team had the same client and looking at the myriad of shopping bags and the tightly clutched brown cat in Madam Shijimi's arms, it seemed they had completed their missions too.

"Welcome back, Shijimi-sama. I hope you had a nice trip today." The Hokage asked her.

"Oh! It was wonderful, Hiruzen-dono. Especially with this girl over here." She said pointing at Ino. "She has a great fashion sense and knew a lot of stores that sold quality material. I look forward to coming back and shop with her."

While Ino puffed up her chest in self-appreciation, Asuma, Shikamaru and Chouji paled at the thought of doing this again. Maybe catching the cat was a better option. But since she had already presented her desire to shop with Ino again, it probably wasn't an option anymore.

Team 8 looked sorry for the male part of Team 10.

"And Naruto-kun and his team were also able to find my Tora in the meantime, which was just the added bonus." She added.

Team 8 got tick marks on their foreheads, _'She was using us to take care of the cat while she shopped without care.'_

"I'm glad you enjoyed your day, Shijimi-sama. Please do not hesitate to ask for our services again." The Hokage said which got him glares from the whole of Team 8 and Team 10 except Ino, who was looking forward to the next shopping spree with the wife of Fire Daimyo.

"Your carriage is ready to depart. Since they are already here, I'll ask both the teams to take your bags to the carriage." The Hokage said which intensified the glares on him.

After taking leave from the Hokage, Madam Shijimi started towards her ride back home. Both Naruto and Kiba asked to share the load of the bags. This time because of Kurenai's and Sakura's presence, even Ino was forced to carry a few to them. 'A woman shouldn't fall behind a man in responsibilities.' were Kurenai's words. Indeed while she wanted to prove that Kunoichis were as much capable as male Shinobis, she in no way undermined them.

* * *

Izumi was perched on a tree, observing her target. After getting his location from the Hokage, who told her that her target didn't get any missions today, so he must be training in his designated training ground with his team, she had immediately sought after him. Currently he was sparing one of his teammates, who was able to keep him on his toes quite well. Frankly though, it was not completely his fault. The girl he was fighting indeed fought with a grace of a strong Kunoichi. And after witnessing the destruction one of her punch caused, she thought it was prudent for anyone to keep their distance. That literally was a one-hit-kill for most people out there.

Seeing their Jounin-sensei call their spar off, she was going to announce her presence but stopped herself. There were many people there with her target who could question her existence, including him. She should probably confront him in private before announcing herself to the world. After all, she should be dead.

So she left to go to where she knew he would come once he is finished, his home.

Unfortunately, she had remained undetected only to the sole person she was there for.

* * *

Training Ground 7

Once Kakashi had called Sasuke's and Namiko's spar off, Shino joined his teammates in front of their sensei. Before his sensei could start Shino decided to enlighten him on an important fact he had discovered, that was, "Sensei, there was an unknown woman surveying on us while Sasuke-san and Namiko-san were sparing. I found it necessary to plant a female Kikaichu on her before she left."

Kakashi looked at his genin lazily, "Hmm, is that so? Very thoughtful of you Shino. Thought I'd sensed someone there. But it didn't look like she meant any harm so I let her be. It was probably one of the many fans Sasuke here has." That got an irritated look from Sasuke. Another fangirl aside, he didn't sense a thing. Though it was probably because keeping away from Namiko's devastating punches was extremely important than that.

Kakashi looked at Sasuke's scowling face, "Now now, no need to make a face like that. I'm sure even if she was serious she wouldn't do anything. Much." That got a few snickers from the blond Senju.

Stopping her snickering, Namiko decided to give her own intake on the woman, "This was a strong one though. She had really big chakra reserves. Almost as much as you sensei."

That got Kakashi to raise his eyebrow, the other one probably got raised too but no one could see it. While he may not be a chakra monster like say the very girl who informed him of this, but he had higher reserves than most Jounins.

Sasuke looked even more irritated at that since while he was dodging her blows, Namiko was still able to sense someone else. That meant that she fought him while not even fully concentrating on him. He still had a long way to go.

Kakashi shrugged after not coming to any conclusion of who it might have been, "Well, she was probably not someone important, but I will still advise you to be a bit careful. Anyway with this we are done here for today. Tomorrow we will be doing some missions again followed by training. Ja ne." Having said that he Shunshined out of there.

Without anything to say to his teammates, Shino took his farewell as well. Sasuke being Sasuke just grunted a 'Bye' before leaving. Namiko looked at the retreating forms of her teammates and sighed before moving towards her home as well. Somehow she got stuck with two highly asocial teammates. Well, making Shino more social was something out of her hands, but she could try it with Sasuke. But maybe it would be a better idea to take someone else's help there. So she locked on to where her brother was and changed her direction.

* * *

Sasuke's apartment

Sasuke was berating himself for again not being able to beat Namiko in the spar all along the way to his home. He was also upset about being the only one who could not sense the person who was apparently spying on them. No, upset was the not correct word, he was angry at himself. He knew he was not a sensory type ninja like Shino or Namiko, but so wasn't Kakashi. Even then he knew someone was there beforehand.

His anger, unfortunately, increased as soon as he opened the door to his apartment. There was a figure at the far end of the hall way in his apartment with their face hidden. But he controlled his anger and got into a fighting stance while bringing out a kunai.

"Who are you and how did you get into the apartment?" He asked angrily.

"Mou, Sasuke-kun. Is that how you greet family?" The figure whined while walking forward revealing it was a she.

Sasuke was shocked on seeing who it was. The face belonged to someone who he thought he wouldn't see alive ever again, like the rest of his clan. It belonged to a girl who, in the past, seemed very close to his older brother. It belonged to,

"Izumi…Uchiha." Sasuke uttered in shock.

Izumi giggled, "Wow! You look like you saw a ghost." Her expression softened before she added, "Though for you, that's probably how it is."

"H-how?" was the only other thing Sasuke could ask while still in a shocked state.

"Hmm, do you mean how I'm alive? It was your Brother." She said further shocking him, "Since you already know the truth behind that night, I guess it's alright to tell you. You see, I didn't like the idea of a coup' against the village but I also didn't believe that it was one us Uchiha who summoned the Kyuubi on that night. So I went along with it. Therefore technically Itachi-kun was also supposed to kill me."

It seemed she didn't want to give Sasuke any chance to recover from his shock. This time though, there was confusion added to the shock.

Izumi was already aware of his confusion, but it was hard for her to continue this part of her story, "He was already there standing over my mother's body. But before I could ask him the reason, he used Tsukuyomi on me. He explained everything to me in there, like why he had agreed to do what Danzo told him or why the coup' was a failed plan from the start. In there without a doubt if he wanted, he could have killed me. He even confessed that to me. But he realized something midway that made him spare me, just like he had decided to spare you. I didn't know then, but I know now what it was."

She closed her eyes before opening them again. Her normal onyx eyes were replaced by something akin to a red three petal flower in a black pupil. "He wanted me to either train you to be strong enough to kill him or to do it myself. He spared me for the same reason he spared you. He wanted his salvation by either your or my hands." She turned her Mangekyou off before continuing, "But I loved him too much to do that. Even though he had just killed my mother, I couldn't fault him for it. He did it to save the village he had pledged to protect. Unlike us other Uchihas, he was different. He thought beyond the clan, sometimes even beyond the village. I told him that if he left me alive, I would tell you everything as well and stop you from killing him."

Sasuke was now really looking for some time to calm himself. The surprises just kept on coming one after another without giving him any time to recover.

Thankfully Izumi was at the end of her tale, "I thought he would kill me after I said that. But instead, I was knocked out by the Tsukuyomi and the next thing I know I'm in a cave outside the village with a shadow clone of your brother's. Itachi had already completed his mission by that time. His clone told me about the other guy who killed the rest of the clan and how you were the last Uchiha in the village, also how he was now on a self-appointed mission to keep an eye on that guy. Since then I have been going around from village to village working as a mercenary while being in contact with your brother. He told me to prepare myself to be able to take care of Danzo before he could get his filthy hands on you. Thankfully it wasn't needed. Though I don't actually know why he was killed off, I'm glad he is dead. And now here I am, to train you like he had originally planned, except for the part where you or I kill him."

She took some time to breathe after finishing her retelling. It was quite long.

Sasuke thought so too. He was indeed confused when Itachi told him someone would be there to train him, but for it to be Izumi? Never did a thought of someone from the Uchiha clan being alive crossed his mind. Actually it did, but only in his dreams where everything was still good and his family was alive, but never in a real life scenario. He looked up at Izumi and asked before he could stop himself, "So you are here just to train me?"

The sadness in his voice wasn't lost on Izumi. After being told everything and even when he didn't know the truth about That night, while consciously unaware, his primary desire was to get his family back. To have someone with him to share his pain. So when he came to know that he could still consider Itachi as his brother, he was happy. But sadly Itachi couldn't stay with him. And now Izumi came into the picture, just to be told that she was here just because Itachi wanted her to train him. He was brought out of his sad mood by Izumi.

"Of course not. I wanted to come back on that very day knowing that you were still alive. But I could not do it because of Danzo. He had enough power to sway the investigation from Itachi to me. So I had to wait to come back. When I got the news that Danzo was killed, I wanted to return even then. But you didn't know about the truth at that time. And Itachi wanted to wait a bit longer to tell you that. So I had to wait until this day." She walked up to Sasuke and bent down to look him in the eye, "I couldn't let my Otouto live alone any longer." She said softly.

Sasuke looked at her wide eyed, "O-Otouto?" He asked, his voice breaking.

Izumi nodded, "Your brother may be aloof, but I will bag him someday. Till then, won't you call me Anee and cheer for me?"

Sasuke, after a long time, had tears in his eyes. He had promised himself after That night that he won't cry anymore. But after getting at least some part of his family back, he couldn't hold himself. He flung his arms around Izumi and hugged her.

Izumi smiled at him and hugged back. "When you were a baby, you never let me hold you. Always started crying when I tried. It seems you haven't changed much from then, eh Otouto?"

* * *

AN:

Just like I said before, no Omake on this one either. Because I didn't want to spoil the happy moment Sasuke had. I don't hate him THAT much. To some it may seem that I favour him since the last few chapters had been about him. Believe me, everyone is going to get their own times or arcs. I do not intend to neglect any character development.

Do give your considerations in the review section.

Next time the Wave arc. So stay tuned.


	16. C-Rank? Surely you are jesting

Hello and Happy New Year to all my readers. Though it's a bit late now.

This chapter has a reason for being as late as it is. I will explain it at the end notes.

There is also a minor rant at the end notes, you can skip it if you want. Which you probably want to.

In chapter 14, I had asked you to tell me who would you want Rock Lee to be paired up with. I only got a two answers for that. Well, I got another similar question. I also have Shino and Haku who, obviously, were not paired in the canon. Just like Lee, I also have someone I want to pair them with, but I want to hear who you want the girls to be. The Lee poll is still on too, so do answer. The rules are the same as before.

 **xhope14x, TheWateringWizard, GunBlade2018,** **Bloody Rogue dragon deity king:** Thank you for your reviews. I already had Tenten planned and I had anticipated Yakumo's name over there. I have to look into her.

 **Darkjaden:** You are right, I will try and fix it in the future chapters. Thanks.

 **sultryvoice:** Thank you very much for your wishes. I am trying to improve my writing as I move forward, so I hope the chapters don't have repeated mistakes. If they do, feel free to point them out.

 **KingRyu:** You're right. It isn't or you could say it hasn't been clarified yet. But according to the chapter you are referring to, it is mentioned that the Namikaze was a new clan that was to be formed because Kushina was announced pregnant and there was a future Namikaze on the way. I am sorry if I couldn't make that perfectly clear in the chapter.

 **Guests:** First for the Sasuke enthusiast. Influenced by the cursed seal? Do you see Anko going out of the village to seek further training from someone in order to take revenge on Orochimaru? Activation of Mangekyou Sharingan? Do you see Itachi coming back to the village to kill Danzo in revenge for ordering the death of his clan? Manipulation by Tobi comes in the play long after he had already gone rouge so that doesn't count at all. Victim of tragedy after tragedy? I don't see any tragedy happening to him after the massacre of his clan. Itachi killing himself (Yes Sasuke was NOT strong enough to kill him, it was basically Itachi committing suicide.) can be called a tragedy, but by then Sasuke had again already gone rouge, so moot point. To me Sasuke is nothing but a spoiled boy blaming the world for the problems, many which he or his own clan created. He is not a sad boy who needs love. He had everything in the village to fill his life with. People still acknowledged him at least. He was no monster to people (Again Itachi's doing). Danzo lived through three wars, saw his friends and senseis sacrifice themselves for him. He is the one who faced tragedy after tragedy. Of course he was also one who caused most of the tragedies. I'm not saying Danzo was a good guy or anything, but he had more realistic view of the world that Sasuke. So Sasuke is the last guy in Naruto, who I would count had a hard life.

Sakura and Hinata did follow their guys with devotion. But the way they did it was completely different. Hinata planned to stand beside Naruto the whole time and sought to better herself for that. Sakura realized that she needed to do that AFTER Sasuke had already left. Before that, she was just following the crowd. Thought you are right, Sakura did become USEFUL in the Shippuden. But not strong. Maybe she can crush boulders with her hands. But that is not the only thing making a shinobi strong. Though her merit as a medic ninja cannot be faulted.

Romantic death? To Sasuke? Sorry. NEVER. The next death I have planned for both Sakura and Sasuke are quite gory. Please be sure to skip it. It's not in this chapter though.

So yeah, I do hate Sasuke. But I will not let that affect my story because I do believe Sasuke could have been redeemed beforehand, like I'm trying to. That's why I have kept the 'bashing' in the Omakes.

Okay, that was longer than I had planned, but anyways, **I do not own Naruto.** Now let's start.

* * *

Chapter 16: "C-Rank? Surely you are jesting."

Somewhere in the mountains in the Land of Rivers

Tenten sighed. She was 12 when she was assigned to Team 3, better known as Team Guy, and it had been a year since then. To her though, it felt a lot longer than that. It felt like she had sighed more times during that year than she had ever before. And most of the time, the reason was the same.

The so-called reason, or reasons were walking in front of her and her - dare she say- only normal teammate. Walking was also a word she used very loosely there. While they were indeed walking, it was not on their feet, but on their hands. Each of them had offered to carry her and Neji on their foot too. Obviously, both had rejected.

They had been given a C-rank mission to take care of some bandits at a local gold mine. This was not their first C-rank, but still she thought it was prudent to keep vigilance and not fool around.

Their sensei, Might Guy, thought so too. The green wearing man, whose Lee looked like a clone of, may have been walking on his hands and teaching his student at the same time, but he still kept his senses sharp. After all, he did have some idea of who his team was going to face. His name at least. He still could not remember the significance of that name. Their mission required them to take out that man along with some goons he was apparently able to gather.

But before his team would be able to do that, they would need some nutrition to fuel their youth. And that's where he was taking them. He looked ahead and saw his destination approaching.

Guy leapt up and landed on his feet, his clon- student followed him. "Alright, my students, we are at our first stop of this mission. Before we begin showing our youth to the unyouthful bandits, we should fill ourselves with it. With that in mind, I think you would be able to do that in this shop. The owner of this shop makes the most youthful curry that is called "The Curry of Life"." He said while pointing at the shop.

While Lee already knew of this shop, his teammates didn't. Tenten and Neji looked at each other and shrugged, they were hungry, and it was almost time for lunch too. So, they followed their sensei and teammate into the shop.

The shop was small, not unlike Ichiraku Ramen in Konoha. But unlike a typical ramen bar, this place had sitting arrangements similar to how a small restaurant would. There was not much for staff though. There seemed to be only an old lady who owned as well as worked the shop.

Guy, already familiar with the place and owner, greeted her, "Good day to you, Sanshou-san. I and my students are here to have some of your youthful Curry of Life."

The owner, Sanshou, greeted back, "Ah! It is Guy-san and Lee-kun. And I see you brought your other students with you today too. Please have a seat, I'll have your curry ready right away." After which she started working on the curry.

While the curry was being made, Lee started telling his teammates how he and his sensei found this shop after running a marathon for three continuous days. Tenten and Neji were only able to sweatdrop at that.

However, during his retelling, Lee found someone missing, "Grandma Sanshou, I don't see Karashi around. Where is he?"

Sanshou made a sad face, "Oh! He was very moved by your work ethic and began attacking life with a new vigour. So much that he left the shop and left for town. I shouldn't have pushed him so much, always telling him to be strong, 'I'm going to be a man.' He said, 'Part of the Kurosuki family.'"

The whole team was shocked to hear that. Kurosuki was the name of the leader of the bandit group they were supposed to eliminate.

Sanshou continued, "But don't worry about it. I'm not blaming you. He made his own decision. Here, your curry is ready." She placed a plate curry rice before everyone.

Before anyone could start eating though, Lee raised his hand, "Guy-sensei! I request to incorporate the rescue of Karashi into our mission." He asked.

Guy gave his student a thumbs-up, "Of course Lee. Trying to save your friend and correcting your mistakes is as youthful as it gets." He said before focusing on the rest of his team and continuing, "We will use Sanshou-san's shop as a base of our operation while we locate this Kurosuki family. But before that, let's dig in this Curry of Life and fill ourselves with youthful energy." He said before taking the spoon and digging in.

This was the first time Tenten and Neji noticed the curry in front of them, and immediately regretted their decision to follow their eccentric teammate and sensei.

The curry, unlike a normal brown or yellow, looked black with bubbles popping out it like it was lava. They shifted their gaze back to their other teammates and saw them eating their curry with a vigour, all the while being completely red in the face. They looked at each other and shrugged again. _'Might as well try'._ They thought.

As soon as they took a bite in, both of their faces turned red. The amount of spice in the curry was unbelievable. Neji felt like it was burning his insides. Like both his cousins, Neji also had a sweet tooth and preferred sweet foods. What he didn't have was a tolerance to spicy food. As soon as the extremely spicy taste of the curry hit his tongue, his eyes, which had unconsciously activated, rolled over and he fell back unconscious.

Tenten had more tolerance to spice than Neji had, but still not enough to fight this Curry of Life. _'Curry of life….hah! It…should be called Curry of Death instead.'_ She thought, before she grabbed the glass of water and downed it in one go. Sadly, it didn't do much and it was just one spoon. The whole plate was still left. Looking at the unconscious Neji beside her and the green wearing duo in front eating away at the impossibly spicy curry, she resigned to her fate, and started eating the curry equally fast as the two before her, so as not to give her tongue enough time to taste the spice. She was fighting a losing battle there though.

Neji was blissfully unaware of the fight his female teammate was fighting against the terrifying curry of death, all the while dreaming about blonde haired girls, feeding him his favourite food.

* * *

Somewhere on the road

The said blonde haired girl was unaware of her presence in someone's dream, obviously. But even if she was aware of it, this was not the time to think about it. She and her team were currently facing someone she shouldn't have to on this mission.

Earlier that day, the Hokage had finally relented on giving them a C-rank mission. It really was a simple mission on paper: Escort a bridge builder to his home back to the land of waves and guard him till he finishes the bridge. Such a simple task. Obviously, since the task was to guard him, there was bound to be some danger to his life, otherwise there was no need for them. But those 'dangers' were supposed to be bandits and such. The two standing in front of her were no mere bandits.

These two were able to 'take down' their sensei. Right after they passed a puddle, which probably was the worst disguise they could come up with since it hadn't rain at all lately, both of them undid the disguise and wrapped their sensei in a chain that was connected to the huge clawed gantlets on their hands. They followed it up by yanking the chain and ripping him to pieces. That ended with up with she and her two teammates stuck trying to protect their annoying client from them, 'alone'.

Not wanting to waste any more time, one of the enemy ninja sped straight towards them. But instead of engaging them directly, he threw two kunais at their client. Shino, who was guarding him, wasn't able to react in time and got stabbed in the chest with one kunai while the other pierced their client's head.

The other enemy ninja looked at his brother's handiwork and smirked, "Hah! That was too easy. I knew these tree huggers were just a bunch of weaklings."

His celebration was cut short when he saw a fireball coming towards him. He jumped up to dodge the fireball, which made him unable to dodge the projectile speeding towards him. It slammed into him and in turn making him slam into the tree behind him.

He shook the cobwebs from his head and looked at what had gotten him into this position. He was shocked to see it was none other than his brother whose eyes had already rolled over, showing his state of unconscious, courtesy of a light punch from Namiko when he was distracted celebrating like his brother.

Before he could move his brother away though, both of them were tied to the tree by a glowing chain, wrapping around them. He looked at the source of the chain and saw it coming out from the back of the blonde girl, who was joined by her dark-haired teammate.

He sneered at them, "You may have defeated us, but our work is already done. The bridge builder is dead."

Namiko gave him a confused look, "You mean that bridge builder." She said while pointing at the tree behind her. The ninja was shocked to see not only the bridge builder alive but the third brat as well. But he was terrified to see their sensei materialize just behind the girl.

"Nice work team. Handled everything phenomenally." Kakashi said smiling at his team. The three were joined by their client and Shino, before Kakashi brought out a book, "Hmmm, let's see. Missing-nin from Kirigakure. Alike looking, so probably brothers. Aha! Here they are. You two are Gouzu and Meizu, Chunins from Kirigakure, also known as the Demon Brothers."

The only conscious brother was gritting his teeth, _'What the hell are these chains? I can't move a muscle. And what happened to Meizu? How was he knocked out so fast? Was it the Jounin?'_ He was desperately trying to free himself.

Namiko, being the originator of his bindings, felt his struggles, "Give it up, these chains have a special binding property that can hold even a Bijuu in its place. Someone like you has no chance of even moving." She turned to her sensei and asked, "Are you sure they are Chunins, Kakashi-sensei? They don't seem like it."

"Hn!" Sasuke voiced his agreement.

"Well then, isn't it just that my cute little Genins are stronger?" Kakashi answered all the while eye smiling.

"Namiko-san and Sasuke-san are the strong ones, why you ask? Because I didn't do anything." Shino intoned.

"That's not true. Shino-kun was the defending the client, that was most important. You were the one who substituted him as well as yourself with your bug clone, right?" Namiko said trying to encourage him. While it was indeed true that Shino didn't do much, they had assessed that their opponents were close range fighters. And the best way to protect someone from close range fighters was to keep away from them, which in turn was best done by a long-range fighter like Shino.

"Absolutely correct Namiko-chan." Kakashi agreed.

The bridge builder decided to butt in there, "Says the one who was the first to be sliced into ribbons. How did ye' survive anyway? And if you did why didn't ye' help 'er students?"

Kakashi suddenly lost his cheerful demeanour and gave his client a piercing, "That was to see who they were targeting. Were they ninja targeting other ninja? Or were they after someone else? Tazuna-san, the mission details told us you may be attacked by bandits. These two are Chunin level ninjas. They are without a doubt led by a Jounin or two. My students may have been able to handle them easily but a Jounin is a completely different story."

The bridge builder, now known as Tazuna, was sweating, "W-what has that do with this?" He asked shakily.

"Tazuna-san, this is no more a C-rank mission. Only the presence of these two bumps it up to a B-rank and depending on whoever is waiting ahead for us, it will be further increased to A-rank. So, tell me. Why exactly are there ninja after you and why did you hide the fact?"

Tazuna was now afraid. He had to tell them, but he was not looking forward to what will happen after he told them.

* * *

On the road to the Land of Tea

While Team 7 was busy interrogating their own client, they at least knew who the client was, Team 8 sadly didn't. Their mission was to guard a racer during a race that was held as an event of some kind in his town in the Land of Sea. But sadly he had escaped from his own escorts before they could reach the leaf village and only his escorts and the mission parameters had reached there. The six people who were supposed to bring him to the village said it was normal though. So now they were walking inside a diamond formation formed by Team 8 with Kurenai at front, Kiba on the left, Akamaru and Sakura on the right and Naruto bringing up the rear, back to the Land of Tea.

Sakura, curious about the main person they were supposed to escort, asked the others, "So, this person who is going to run in the race, don't we need to find him before he is attacked or something?"

Her teammates were also keeping their ears open for that answer. One of the guys, apparently the leader of the band replied, "Tch! Idate? Knowing him, he has already returned to the village. He vehemently opposed the idea of hiring ninja to guard him for some reason. And when he heard that the Boss was going to ask Konoha, he just turned tail and ran. We had to drag him as far as he came, before he somehow disappeared."

Sakura tilted her head in confusion, "Isn't there any chance that he was kidnapped on the way or something?" Her question while asked with complete innocence obviously brought some worry to the others.

All the six people looked at each other before the leader shook his head, "No. It is forbidden to act against the racer before the event. Even if the Wagarashi family hired ninja themselves, there is very less chance that they would act before the race. It would jeopardize their position in front of the district Minister."

Sakura nodded. A sudden sound caused every one of them to tense and take ready positions, before they looked in the direction the sound came from and saw Kiba sweating slightly. He had also taken a fighting stance, but the others had already figured out the source of the sound. Kurenai's glare got him out of his stance, "Kiba. Didn't you eat before coming to the mission?"

Kiba, seeing no way to get out said sheepishly, "I uh…I…had a uh…late start today…so…I kinda…skipped breakfast."

Kurenai's glare just intensified. But a similar sound again made her look at the other perpetrator. It came from one to the people they were escorting.

The guy looked embarrassed, "Umm…well we didn't have enough time in the leaf village to eat too, so…."

"There is a tea shop just ahead on our way. I think we can stop there for some snacks." The leader of the group suggested being hungry himself.

Kurenai sighed, "Well, I guess we can do that."

* * *

It turned out the tea shop was not so far. It took them hardly 10 minutes of walking before they reached it. When they went to enter it, the leaf shinobi weren't surprised to see it being occupied by only one person, but the group they were escorting were.

"Idate!" The leader yelled, which compelled the person sitting inside to look at him and click his tongue.

"What are you still doing here?" Idate asked the man.

The leader walked up to him and grabbed him by the collar, "What are WE doing here? What are YOU doing here after leaving us midway? You are supposed to be our candidate for the race. We went through the trouble of hiring ninjas to guard you during the race. And what do you do? Disappear. What would have happened if something happened to you? What would Boss Jirocho say, huh? What would we tell him?" He yelled at him.

Idate sneered at him, shoving himself away from the man, "Oh yeah! Well I didn't tell you or the Boss to hire ninja for the race. I can win the race by myself." He looked at the ninja they had hired, "And what's more, you hired these weaklings from leaf village. If they are going to be my bodyguards, then I am better off by myself." He said before running out of the shop.

The leader tried to stop him, "Wait! Idate!" but he was already gone.

Naruto could still sense him, but he had to give it to the brat, he had ran quite far away in this short time.

While Naruto keeping a track on him, the leader was apologizing to Kurenai. "I'm very sorry for his behaviour. He has always hated ninjas for some reason."

Kurenai waved him off, "Don't worry, we come across many people like him. Though I think now that we have found him we should not let him wander alone, right Naruto?"

Naruto only nodded and disappeared from there.

Everyone other than Team 8 were looking at her incredulously, "Umm…While I know you are ninjas, but Idate was specifically chosen for the race because of his speed. He is very fast even by shinobi standards." The leader told Kurenai.

She, in turn, just smiled at him, "Is that so? Well then you will find that Naruto tends to not follow shinobi standards."

All the six people from the Land of Tea looked at each other doubtfully.

* * *

Idate was still running away from the tea shop at high speed, when his got foot caught on a stray tree root and he was flung quite far because of his speed, making him end up hanging from a tree branch.

"*sigh* All that speed won't matter at all, if I don't watch where I go." He said to himself before he leapt down from the tree and was going to continue before he was stopped by Naruto.

"You sure are fast for someone who is not using chakra to enhance his speed. Reminds me of someone from the village." He said.

Idate was shocked, this guy had caught up to him faster than he thought he could. Before he could reply something fell off of the tree and landed in front of Naruto.

"Huh, what's this?" He went to pick it up but it was snatched up hastily by Idate.

"Hands off. This is mine." Idate said. He bent down and unlatched something on his legs and took them off. He held them in his hands and counted, "Ready. Set. Go!" before letting them fall to the ground. Both of them proved to be heavy because as soon as they touched the ground, they formed a dust cloud, using which, Idate ran away again.

Naruto stood there for a while, surprised, "Hmm, leg weights. He reminds me more and more of Lee. Obviously unlike him, this guy gave up at some point of time." He said before following him.

* * *

Land of Tea

Idate had finally made it back to his town, the Degarashi port. He made his way towards the Boss's, as well as his own, house. He went to the Boss's room and knocked to be granted entrance. On been given permission, he slid opened the door only to be surprised. Naruto was sitting in front his Boss.

"What!? How did you reach here before me?" He said while pointing at Naruto.

He was answered by his Boss though, "Idate! Naruto-kun here told me you left the group I sent to escort you, and when they found you, you ran away again. What is the meaning of this?" by a question.

Idate tried to deny it, "H-he's lying. I didn't do anything like that. In fact he left his team back to reach here ahead of me."

Jirocho Wasabi looked amused, "Hoo! Is that so? Then where are they? I don't see anyone with you."

Idate could not come up with an answer. He glared at Naruto who was grinning at him. However, Naruto straightened his face when he was addressed by Jirocho, "By the way Naruto-kun, where is the rest of your team?"

"They should already be on the way here. The envoy you sent didn't get enough time to refill themselves before heading back, so they had to take a break to eat something." Naruto answered. He looked towards the wall on the left and added, "In fact I already sense them, they should be here in 10 to 15 minutes."

"I see." Jirocho said while again glaring at Idate, "Well, you probably know what your Team's mission is, but of course I will elaborate as soon as your Team reaches here. Till then, why don't you tell me how Tsunade-hime is doing? It's been a long time I've seen her."

* * *

Somewhere in a random village

Asuma with his team was walking alongside a man named Tofu. Apparently he was an ex-member of a bandit group, which was terrorising the local population and stealing their harvest every year. This time though when the village elder refused, the leader of the bandit group, Baji, kidnapped his granddaughter as a hostage. So the village was forced to hire shinobis to deal with them and rescue his granddaughter. And Tofu was like a guide who offered to show them where the bandit's hideout was. His team's mission was to rescue the girl and neutralize the bandit group if possible.

 _'On the hindsight, they should have contacted the village the moment the bandits started harassing them.'_ Asuma thought.

After some more walking they reached a place which looked like an opening to a cave.

Tofu turned towards them while pointing at the cave mouth, "The hideout's located in a natural fort. It's deep inside this cavern that branches like an anthill's passage ways. There's only one way to get inside and they have three forts guarding that route. But the trickiest obstacle of all is Baji's intellect. He's very hard to outsmart that's why people fear him so much."

Asuma nodded. It seemed to be a tad bit difficult for a first C- rank mission for his team, but he had prepared them for this as much as he could in a month. And he believed they could pull this off.

"Okay. So our primary mission is to rescue the hostage and that will involve a confrontation with the gang." He said before turning to Shikamaru, "Shikamaru, what do you think of this situation?" He knew Shikamaru had the capability of becoming a tactician of a level as high as his father. This was the best chance to test how good his tactical skills were at the moment.

Tofu was surprised by this though. He thought being the Jounin leader of the team, Asuma would be the one to form all the tactics and not the green-behind-the-ears genins.

"Hmm, it's unfortunate that we only have one way in, but we won't be moving a large force through. Since it's only a four of us, maybe get can get past the forts, undetected." Shikamaru said.

"However," He continued, "I'm sure they've set up numerous traps to defend it, since that's the most obvious plan of attack. That route is still our best chance to escape without fighting back after we've made the rescue. At the very least, we need to confirm that there is a safe passage back."

"I see. Unfortunately we are just one team, so we don't have a choice to split up. Otherwise we could have formed two teams, one to rescue the hostage and the other to secure the exit." Asuma said.

"Actually, I think you should go in undetected for the rescue, while we hold the passage back safe." Shikamaru suggested.

Asuma looked conflicted, "That's a very dangerous plan. You still haven't fought anyone another than genins. While I believe you can handle mere bandits, their numbers could prove to be a problem."

"You are right, but you are our safest bet in rescuing the girl, since that is a more delicate job and we cannot afford to screw up. Fighting the bandits does not need such subtlety." Shikamaru argued.

Asuma didn't look completely convinced, but had to agree to the plan, "Okay, I guess you are right. But don't come inside until you get my signal." He ordered.

"Hai." The whole Team exclaimed.

* * *

Land of Sea

Looking over at the different islands that made the Land of Sea, Anko got a very unpleasant feeling. No, unpleasant would be the wrong word. She was in pain. The pain originating specifically from the back of her neck, where her cursed seal was. For some reason, it was flaring up every now and then, causing her a great deal of pain. Along with that she was getting flashbacks of what seemed to her like memories from her past. It seemed she was brought here by her traitorous sensei, but when and exactly what happened she couldn't remember. And these were happening more frequently as she and her team got close to the Land of Sea.

That's right, her team. It was their first mission outside the village. Their first C-rank mission. Over the period of one month, since the team was formed, they had been able to find a good synchronization with each other. Unlike the other teams, her team was formed almost arbitrarily, an heiress of a clan, an emotionless former ROOT and an orphan taken in by a Sannin. It really looked like a team hastily put together. But still they were able to find their own place in the team and could now work together sufficiently.

That's why Anko had requested a C-rank mission. To actually start on their path of becoming a ninja. The mission could be called a bit harder than what a normal first C-rank for Genins would be, but not by so much. They were supposed to escort a ship carrying a monetary shipment to the Land of Water. Now ninja's were not hired for this purpose frequently. The waters were safe enough for aptly armed men to transfer the shipment. But recently there have been attacks on shipments such as this, by something people described as a sea monster.

For civilians, a Genjutsu cast on them would make anyone seem like a sea monster. At the same time it could be like a mutated fish or an animal, like the ones in the Training Ground 44 back in her village. But this uncertainty of what they were facing, made Anko think that it was a tad bit harder for a first mission outside the village for her team. Not to mention, this sudden pain caused by her curse mark.

But she endured it. She looked at her team and said, "Okay. We will go to the captain of the ship we are supposed to guard and get the mission details. After that we will find an Inn to rest for tonight. There is no need for training right now, since we are uncertain of what we will face and I want you completely fresh, understood?" She asked.

Her team nodded, "Okay then let's go."

* * *

Shigaraki Inn

"I'm responsible for guarding the ships collecting funds, my name is Hitode." Said a bearded and bald man, wearing something similar to samurai's clothing.

Team 11 was sitting in front of him in this Inn, with two other members of Hitode's crew.

"I'm glad that our request was acknowledged with a fast response. It is really good to see you here so fast, especially since there has been a change in the schedule of the shipment." He continued.

Anko was surprised, "Change?" She asked.

Hitode nodded, "Now we are scheduled to depart tomorrow morning as opposed to the day after. I apologize for the late response, but the higher ups find the relationship with the Land of Water very important, so we had to push the departure forward."

Anko nodded, "Understandable. As long as we have tonight to replenish the energy we spent to get here, it is okay. So, we'll meet directly at the port tomorrow morning."

Hitode bowed his head, "Thank you for your co-operation." He raised his head and added, "Just one more thing. You've probably already seen, our country is not a rich one. Fishermen and us, both have been worried about the disturbances caused by this 'Demon of the Ocean'." He and his colleagues bowed their heads before he requested, "We will greatly appreciate your help in resolving this problem."

Anko did not want to put her Genin in unnecessary danger, but not accepting this request would look bad on her village, so, "I understand. We will try our best." She replied.

* * *

After booking two rooms in that same inn, the Genins of Team 11 set out in search for food for dinner. Seeing as they were in a town, it would be a waste to let go of the chance to eat proper food and instead eat a ration bar. Anko had decided to go off on her own to gather some information on the Demon of the Ocean, which she advised her Genin to do as well.

Hinata was looking at all the shops along the streets. While she would have liked to cook her dinner herself, her room unfortunately didn't come equipped with a kitchen, and while she could cook outside, she would rather not do that when she already had a room. So they had decided to opt for a restaurant or such to have their dinner in.

"Hmm…there aren't any ramen shops around." Hinata let out unconsciously.

Haku caught on it immediately, "Scouting for places to go on a date with your 'Boyfriend', Hinata-san?" He said slyly.

Hinata 'eeped' and pressed her fore fingers embarrassingly, "N-no. It's j-just that…I l-like ramen and I don't like sea food, so I thought that would be the best choice."

Haku grinned at the lack of response on his 'Boyfriend' comment, "Hmm…You hate sea food? Your 'Boyfriend' is named 'fishcake' you know?" He continued teasing her.

Sai, while now aware of Hinata's and Naruto's feelings for each other, still was not good with complex verbal tricks like teasing, "But Haku-san, I think Hinata-san is talking about her tastes in food. Naruto-san being named on a food item made from sea-water fish wouldn't affect her feelings. Since she probably doesn't plan on eating him."

Haku started at him awkwardly and then sweatdropped when Hinata's face became even redder than before. _Is that blood coming out of her nose?'_ He thought. Their banter was cut when they reached a fish shop.

A girl, mostly wrapped up in bandages, was selling some fish -that she had probably caught herself- to the shopkeeper. Haku noticed that the amount of money paid back to her was really low against the quality of fish sold to him. So he walked up to the shopkeeper and said, "Excuse me. I'm sorry but I couldn't help but notice that you are paying very less for what is obviously high quality fish."

The shopkeeper looked slightly troubled, "Oh well uh…look…I'm not underpaying her. It's just with all this uproar caused by the Demon of the Ocean, customers are completely staying away. This is the market price around here."

Haku nodded, "I understand, but that fish is rarely…" He was cut off by the girl running off with whatever money she got.

Haku's team meanwhile had caught up to him.

"I wonder what happened to her. She had a lot of bandages. Is she injured?" Hinata wondered aloud.

The shopkeeper answered her though, "No, she has her reasons. You see, she is a diver from a small town on the Cape of Mother Island."

The team got surprised, "Why would a diver from Mother Island transfer islands on purpose?" Haku asked.

The shopkeeper kept the fish he was sold away and explained, "That's because the island people won't do business with her. That girl, in the past, she was spirited away."

"Spirited away? You mean she suddenly disappeared, right?" Haku asked again.

The shopkeeper nodded, "That's right. In the past, a lot of island people disappeared from being spirited away. The story is that out of all those people, she was the only one who suddenly returned. It's a small village, so everyone felt it to be creepy for only her to return. They say she lives alone at the edge of the island. With all those bandages she is many times called a monster."

"I see. I feel sorry for her." Hinata said in a sad tone.

Haku looked at the retreating form of the girl more intensely. The Team left the shopkeeper and returned to their task of finding a place to eat. Suddenly Haku asked, "Hinata-san, can you check where that girl is headed?"

Hinata looked at him confusedly, "I can but why do you want to check on her?"

"With the people calling her a monster and her being a diver, she could have some useful information about this Demon of the Ocean." Haku explained. What he didn't tell her was that he felt a slight kinship to the girl. Before being found by Jiraiya, he was also called a monster because of his Kekkei-Genkai. Even his own father tried to kill him and his mother, calling them monsters for having a bloodline. He shook his head to clear all those depressing thoughts of the past and saw Hinata nodding.

Hinata whispered a small Byakugan causing veins to bulge at her temples. She looked through the buildings that were in the way to search for the girl. She gasped when she found her.

"She is being attacked by two people, who have at least high Chunin-level chakra!" She exclaimed in alarm.

With a nod to his teammates, Haku and the rest sped towards the girl directed by Hinata. They reached her just as they say one of the assailants punch her in the stomach. Before they could do anything further, Haku threw a senbon at the guy who had punched, causing him to dodge and backtrack. The team went and stood in a protective formation around the girl to defend her. But the enemies just stepped back and disappeared.

Hinata turned to the girl on the ground and helped her up, "Are you okay?" She asked.

The girl gave a small nod before she looked at the people who had helped her. She show the leaf insignia on Hinata's forehead protector and thought, _'Ninjas.'_

She quickly gathered the things she had bought and ran away without saying anything.

Team 11 decided not to follow her this time.

"Shinobis. Land of Sea is not supposed to have a hidden village. And with at high Chunin-level chakra, you say Hinata-san?" Haku asked.

Hinata nodded. Haku looked at Sai and nodded as well before stating, "We have to inform sensei about this."

Neither of his teammates had any objection to that.

* * *

AN:

There is actually an Omake connected to this arc, but I decided to move it so that people can relate it with the fic, so it will be in the next chapter.

As you would have already figured out, these five missions will more or less go parallel. The reason it took this long for me to write this chapter, is because I had to research a lot to find the correct mission for everyone as well as the mission specifics. I decided to use already formed missions, canon or filler, so that it would be easy to follow, without much useless repetitions. I hope I was able to make every mission clear, though I left out the main details out purposefully.

RANT START YOU CAN SKIP FROM HERE

I watched the respective episodes to write these missions. I must say in first part of the series it felt like they tried to make anyone else not Sasuke as pathetic as possible. Especially in the fillers. In the Isaribi arc, Naruto just runs at the mutated Amachi like a common brawler. Not once, but thrice and end up with the same results, that is being thrown back. They were not even trying to make him look like a ninja. Akado tries to attack Ino and she just braces herself and tells him to not come near her. The hell? Is she really supposed to be a ninja? And then at the end, Naruto summons Kyuubi's chakra to fight. Like he has no strength of his own at all. They try their best to make it look like Naruto was able to live upto the Shippuden solely by relying on the Kyuubi. Which I find really pathetic.

That is one of the reasons I had stopped watching that midway and directly started with Shippuden. Another reason was that I was watching it in English dub and that 'Believe it' every five seconds was annoying as hell. 'Datte'bayo' is better or if you want English then 'You know' sounds better.

Kishimoto-sensei didn't try to change thing about Naruto's reliance on Kyuubi much either. While others Shinobis like Minato, Jiraiya, Third Hokage, Tsunade etc become as strong as they were without any bloodline or outside ,or in Naruto's case inside, help. Even now, Naruto summoned the Kyuubi's chakra to fight a child like Shin Uchiha.

Well enough of that. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. See you in the next one.


	17. Enemies ahead!

You people thought I died, didn't you? Or that the fic had died? Well sorry to say that's not the case. I'm back with another chapter.

But still I'm sorry for this absence. I was busy the whole February with exams and most of my March was taken away by an assignment. But now I'm back. With the start of a new semester, the things will slow down a bit and will give me more time to write.

Now, for people who forgot what happened in the last chapter (That's everyone I guess), every team was sent onto a C-rank mission which quickly escalated into something else. This one will only be a small advancement in that department.

 **As a warning in the beginning, the Omake at the end of this chapter may be a bit gruesome for some people. Especially fans of Sakura and Sasuke. So please skip it. If you do not want to read it, there will be another warning before it starts.**

Onto some reviews,

 **bloody dragon fang, TheWateringWizard, GunBlade2018 –** Thank you for your reviews. **TheWateringWizard** I feel you there.

 **Happy Guest –** First of all, I didn't know you can change name while reviewing like that. Well at least that differentiated you from the others. Sasuke would have come back to the village after killing Itachi? Nah, I don't think so. And even if he did, what then? Should the village have welcomed him with open arms? After he joined the guy who killed the Third Hokage? The fact of the matter is Sasuke's life is no more tragic than many other shinobis. But they definitely endured it better. You say Kakashi had the ANBU to rely on. But Guy realized that the ANBU was pushing him even further into darkness. What really got Kakashi out of his spunk (Though not fully) was the presence of Minato. Sasuke could have got past his tragic life similarly, and he already had Naruto and team 7 for that. But no, he acted as if the whole world had wronged only him and the world was living at the expense of his pain. That is what I hate about Sasuke. And the series in general, as how much it revolved around Sharingan and Uchihas.

 **Ben Walker1 –** Maybe you are right. But this is another direction the story could have went. Honestly, I'm writing this story for myself and posting it because I thought there are a few other people who may have thought alike. But you are wrong in one part. Sasuke was never a main character in my story. The only reason he was in spotlight for these many chapters is because I wanted to take him out of the picture as fast as possible.

Okay then let's move on to the chapter. But first, **it should be quite obvious by now that I do not own Naruto.**

* * *

Chapter 17: Enemies ahead!

Outside the bandits' hideout with Team 10

Ino was currently doing one of her least favourite activity. Waiting. She was waiting on her Sensei's signal. She looked around a bit before looking at her teammates and found someone missing.

"Hey, where did that Tofu guy go?" She asked.

Shikamaru who was sitting on a rock doing the same as Ino but more willingly, answered her, "He said nature called."

"It has been a while though." Chouji managed to say between his munching of the chips.

Just then they heard a commotion coming from somewhere below them. All three of them looked down from the hill they were on and saw the topic of their conservation getting dragged by three people, most probably bandits.

"That's Tofu!" Chouji exclaimed.

"The bandits captured him? What are we going to do now?" Ino asked worriedly.

She looked at Shikamaru, who was now sitting on the ground cross legged with his eyes closed and fingers cupped in a peculiar fashion.

He opened his eyes after some time and declared, "The enemy is a gang of bandits with lots of men. They have a hostage and three forts. And beyond that there's the citadel." He paused for a moment before continuing, "Well it will be troublesome, but it seems we'll have to go after them ourselves."

His teammates couldn't find any fault in his statement and nodded.

* * *

Citadel

The three bandits that caught Tofu brought him to their leader.

"Boss Baji, we brought the deserter." One of them said.

"Good, you can go now." said the leader of the bandits, Baji.

As soon as the three goons left, Tofu relaxed himself. He freed himself from the rope that had his hands tied easily. "Fuu! That hurt." He said patting his shoulders.

"Welcome back my friend." Baji greeted.

"Those men of yours, train them better. Remember I'm a very valuable informant." If Baji didn't know better, he would have thought Tofu was threatening him.

"Sorry, they have been trained to be suspicious even if someone gives the right password." Baji explained nevertheless.

"Well, better safe than sorry I guess." Tofu admitted.

"So, do you have information for me?" Baji asked wanting to know every kind of danger that he could be in, just like a strategist.

Tofu laughed, "Yeah, the village hired ninja, just like you thought."

"Hmm, and how strong are they?" Baji asked again.

"It's just a 4-man cell with a Jounin and three Genins." Tofu replied.

"A single team? Get rid of the Jounin and the Genin would fall. They won't be a problem." Baji summarized.

"Yeah. And the Jounin isn't even with the Genins." Tofu agreed.

Baji raised an eyebrow curiously, "Oh! And why's that?"

"He is looking for a way to get here without passing by the forts." Tofu answered.

Baji chuckled, "That's what I'd do too. But if they don't anticipate the traps along the way, then they'll be on nothing more than a suicide mission."

"Unfortunately, one of them already thought of that." Tofu said seriously.

Baji turned and raised an eyebrow.

Tofu continued, "He's a Genin named Shikamaru. And he already assumed that there'll be traps."

"Hmm, so a Jounin bypasses our forts and is alert for traps while trying to find a way inside huh? As if I could be defeated by such a predictable strategy." Baji boasted.

Suddenly a bandit came in yelling.

"Boss! Three shinobis are here. They somehow managed to get past all of our forts!" He exclaimed alarmingly.

"What!?"

* * *

Meanwhile in Degarashi Port – Jirocho's House with Team 8

Just like Naruto had said, his team had joined him in 10 minutes. They were quite amused to see the other six people drag Idate away with them, all with scary looks on their faces.

Once the greetings were exchanged and everyone was seated, Jirocho started, "Okay, well you already know who I need you to guard. But let me tell you first what this race is all about." He continued on reciting a story of how long ago a major storm had hit the port and to stop it, people had offered special jewels called the Ryuko jewels to the Todoroki shrine. That one tradition changed into a festival over time that is repeated every four years. But recently the celebration had taken a terrible path because of the feud between the Wasabi and the Wagarashi families, two gambling organisations, over the control of Degarashi port. To stop this, the district Minister suggested on using the race as a means to decide who controlled the port for the next four years.

"And that's where we are now. Unfortunately, after we sent out our missive to you, we got some updates. Just like the last time, we got rumours that the Wagarashi family has hired Shinobis again." He ended.

"Shinobis! But that will make this at least a B-rank mission, more depending upon the Shinobi they have hired." Kurenai exclaimed.

Jirocho nodded, "I am aware, and I am willing to pay for it, even extra if you want, but this time it's important for the Wasabi family to win. Ever since the Wagarashis came into power, they have increased the taxes on everything, set high prices on the products. Their thugs come and harass the towns people, demanding shopkeepers to give away their items for free." Jirocho bowed his head and continued, "Please, lend me your strength to win the race this time around, I beg you."

Kurenai was conflicted. This was probably more than what her team could handle. But on the other hand, the client was bowing his head and there was no time to send for another team. If she decided to not take this mission it would count as a failure.

"I guess since we are already here, we will give our best." She decided against her better judgement.

* * *

Team 8 was looking around the town while also looking for the shinobis hired by the Wagarashi family. Naruto was assigned the additional task of guarding Idate, mainly because of his potential flight risk. Kiba, Akamaru and Sakura were paired up, since Kiba and Akamaru were the main sensors. Kurenai, being a Jounin, was scouting on her own. She would have liked to keep all her Genins together, instead of scattered like that, but Idate needed to be watched, and Naruto was the only one capable enough to match his speed as well as find him if he disappeared again.

"Boss Jirocho is a big man around here. He shouldn't have to bow or beg to some Shinobi wannabees." Idate said.

"Well, yeah he didn't exactly need to. This was a mission and we would have seen through it anyway. But if it wasn't for him, I don't think many people would come and help you out if you asked." Naruto answered him.

"Believe me, if I wanted an escort, it definitely wouldn't be the weak shinobis from the Leaf Village." Idate retorted.

Naruto scowled at him, "This is the second time you have looked down upon Leaf shinobis. Why do you hate us so much?" He asked.

Idate gritted his teeth, "That's none of your business."

"Well since we ARE Leaf shinobis and we are stuck escorting you, it will become our business." Naruto pushed on, willing to know the reason.

"Tch! I said it's none of your business. Now stop following me." Idate said before walking off faster.

Naruto sighed. He couldn't do anything more than ask right now. _"Maybe sensei will know something."_ He thought before following.

* * *

Curry of Life shop with Team 3 

The young but not so 'Youthful' member of Team 3, Tenten had somehow finished the extremely spicy curry. She had also somehow persuaded her 'Youthful' teammates to take some rest in the shop itself. They agreed to it, but mainly because Neji was still out of it.

After Neji woke up, he asked for a less spicy curry, since he possibly could not finish the concoction that his teammates called 'The Curry of Life'. Thankfully he was able to get a less spicy curry to eat and fill himself.

Since everyone was now ready, Guy decided it was time to map out the plan for the mission, "As you know, our mission is to take care of the bandit group which has taken over the Katabami Gold mine. Today we will do a recon of the place and try and locate where their boss, Raiga Kurosuki is. I cannot remember exactly who he is, but I have heard his name a few times whenever I was on the field. So, we must be careful in dealing with him. Additionally, we now have an extra objective. We have to find Karashi and rescue him from the unyouthful bandits." He explained in a tone completely unlike him.

After getting nods from his students, he stood up and announced, "Okay! Let's go!"

* * *

Katabami Gold mine

Just like any gold mine, here too people were coming out with the raw ore of gold one after another and then going back to fetch more. Unlike every other gold mine though, there were people in black cloaks shouting commands to the miners. That was the sight which greeted Team 3 when they arrived at mine.

Now having someone to supervise a work like this was not new, it was the way these people in black were treating the miners was what set them apart. Like right now, there was an old man who couldn't take the load of ore and had dropped them to the ground. Now a normal supervisor would let a worker rest or at least let others help him up. Instead the people in black were just glaring at him and forcing him to pick everything up by himself again.

The whole team was getting infuriated at the way the bandits were treating the miners but had to hold themselves for now. For Lee though, it was getting less and less bearable.

"Guy-sensei, we must help those people!" He exclaimed.

"We should finish our reconnaissance before we make a move, Lee." Neji interjected before his sensei could reply.

"Ya, hold your horses." Tenten followed up.

"Your teammates are right, Lee. We should finish gathering information before we act like that." Guy mirrored his other students, before continuing, "But I think we now have all the information we can get from here." He said while giving a thumbs up to Lee.

Lee's eyes shone bright before he said, "Right, Leave this to me Guy-sensei." and leapt off.

* * *

"That's right, pick 'em up. Or do you want to have your funeral?" One of the bandits told the downed old man.

"N-no, please. Not that. I'm sorry." the old man apologized, picking up the stones with haste.

The bandit was laughing at the man on the ground when suddenly his eyes grew wide and he slumped to the ground, courtesy of the punch to his gut by Lee. Before the other bandit could react, Lee had already gotten behind them and chopped one on the neck and punched another in the stomach effectively knocking them out.

He waved to his team, who joined him shortly. He turned to the old man who was still on the ground and said, "You are alright. Fear not."

The old man instead of looking relieved looked even more frightened than before, "Are you crazy? Dear gods, what have you done!"

Tenten thinking that it was just the shock running through him, tried to help him by giving him some water, "Here you must be thirsty."

The old man didn't take the water, instead slapped with away and out of Tenten's hand.

"Hey, what's that all about?" Tenten yelled.

"You got to do to me just what you did to them. Hurry, hit me, beat me to the ground!" The old man requested.

"Huh, are you feeling Okay?" Tenten asked.

"If you won't, then I will do it myself." He said before starting to hit his own face.

Lee managed to stop him from hitting himself anymore, "What is wrong with you?" Tenten asked.

"Don't you see? If I'm not injured, they would think I was behind it. And that means they will give me a funeral." The old man cried.

At that very moment, a gong was heard which scared the old man even more.

"That gong. What does that mean?" Lee asked.

"Is it some kind of alarm?" was Tenten's question.

"N-no. It's summoning everyone to a funeral." The man answered.

Team 3 confusion about that statement was voiced by Neji, "A funeral?"

"That's right. If any of us displeases Raiga, the leader of the clan, then as punishment he arranges a funeral, in which the guilty person is buried alive." The old man explained.

Team 3 was shocked to hear that. While cruel things like that were not actually uncommon in the unforgiving shinobi world, it was still something else to hear it actually happening. Even a veteran like Guy, who went through a whole war, was shocked. It just cemented the fact the whoever this Raiga was, had to be stopped. But even now he couldn't exactly remember the significance of the name. He should be able to remember someone who apparently liked to bury people alive.

The old man carried on his explanation, "Then Raiga gets very sad. He bows his head and weeps over the coffin as if he just lost a dear friend."

"That gong. Whose funeral are they ringing it for? It can't be yours can it old man?" Neji inquired.

"No. I heard they caught Rokuske this morning." The old man answered.

"Rokuske?" Lee asked not knowing who it was.

"He is a villager, who escaped here to get help from one of the hidden villages." The old man elaborated.

Team 3 looked at each other and nodded. It was decided. They had to save whoever this Rokuske was.

* * *

On the way to Wave Country with Team 7

Kakashi was now regretting his choice to go forward with the mission. First, it was the surprise entry of two Chunin level missing ninja. Even though his students took care of them relatively, their appearance pointed to more danger. Then Tazuna explained about Wave's situation. Apparently, it was currently under a tyrannous rule of the shipping magnet, Gato the owner of the company Gato transport. A year ago, he seized all the shipping businesses in the Land of Wave using gangsters and ninjas and was now in control of the whole country. He used his wealth and power to silence any opposition against him. But the bridge Tazuna was building threatened his monopoly of transport in Wave and hence had sent ninjas to take Tazuna out.

This told Kakashi that more trouble was inevitable. And sure enough, just after crossing the sea via a boat while taking extra care not to make enough noise to alert anyone, they walked right into an ambush.

Or that is what he wanted their enemy to think, because unfortunately for the enemy, his team had two sensors in it, one of whose sensing ability can be classified as purely cheating in the ninja game. Namiko had sensed the ambush before they even set their foot on the island that was Wave country. Unfortunately for them, the enemy was blocking all their paths inside the country, so they had to go through the 'Ambush'. The only advantage they had was they knew how many enemies there were and their positions, which was a lot of information to have before an imminent ambush.

The enemy being unaware of it tried to intimidate them by some show of strength. It almost did work, what with the huge sword and all. And his Genins also acted almost exactly how he told them to. He had instructed them to act surprised, to let the enemy underestimate them. It was no big deal for Shino, since no one could actually see or know what he was thinking anyway. Sasuke's usual act of arrogance was normal too, even though he had changed a bit. Tazuna, even while he was told to act, could not control his fear in front of the imposing man standing on a sword that as tall as the man himself, so all good there. Now if only Namiko could stop from overacting it would be good.

"Kyaaa! Sasuke-kun, save me!" Namiko yelled while hugging Sasuke's left hand tightly. Sasuke was trying to act indifferent but it was difficult for even him to ignore the soft feeling of his arm being pillowed by something soft. Or two somethings. Kakashi was trying hard to not sweatdrop as well as nosebleed, _"As expected of Tsunade-sama's daughter. Though Kushina-san was no slouch in that department either."_ He thought.

Even their enemy's eye was twitching, "Copy Ninja Kakashi, I think you should choose your students correctly. A girl like that will not live long in this shinobi world." He said.

Kakashi turned his bored looking eyes on him, "Don't worry about her. You should instead worry about yourself, Demon of the Hidden Mist, Momochi Zabuza." He said seriously, even though on the inside he was relieved, _"Phew! He bought it!"_

The enemy, Zabuza, had appeared on his huge swords after it had almost cleaved everyone in half when he had thrown it and it got stuck on a tree. He was a tall man with black spikey hair. He wasn't wearing any shirt and his baggy pants had the same strip pattern that Haku's outfit had. He had bandages that hid half of his face, similar to Kakashi.

"Oh! So, my reputation is known to you as well. How convenient. So, I guess you will comply and hand over the old man. That way I won't have to hurt your students." Zabuza threatened.

"Now that is a problem. I cannot hand him over to you. It seems we are at an impasse." Kakashi shrugged him off easily.

"There is no impasse here. If you don't comply, I will just have to cut down every one of you." Zabuza said while crouching down on the sword handle he was standing on.

"That is not going to be as easy as you think." Kakashi said while reaching for his forehead protector which was hiding his left eye. He pulled it up and opened his eye showing the distinctively red pupil bearing three black tomoes, signature to the Uchiha clan's Sharingan.

"Ohh! Looks like I get to see the Sharingan in action. This is an honour." Zabuza said sounding impressed. "During my time in Kirigakure, we had standing orders to eliminate you on sight. Our Bingo book stated you as 'The Man who copied a thousand Jutsus – Kakashi the Copy Ninja."

Sasuke looked at Kakashi, _"And I still don't know HOW he got that Sharingan in the first place."_ He thought.

Zabuza looked at Sasuke and continued, "You shouldn't wear the mark of your clan so openly, Uchiha. Many out in the field have a bone to pick with your clan. You will be easy pickings for them."

He then looked at Namiko, who was still clinging to Sasuke's arm, trying to act scared, "I didn't think Tsunade Senju's daughter will be like this. While not many people remember or recognize the mark on your back, but those who do will come for you as well, Senju. And believe me, the Uchiha has it better in that regard since he only needs to fear for his death. For you however…"

He chuckled at bit before saying, "Quite the setup you have there, Kakashi. An Uchiha and a Senju on the same team. Sadly, it won't stay as such for long." He hopped onto the water surface of the lake that they were standing by and made two hand signs using both his hands, one close to his chest while the other straight up, "Ninja art: Hidden Mist Jutsu"

A thick mist started forming around everyone, limiting sight to barely arm length.

"Team! Manji formation. Protect the client. I will deal with him." Kakashi's voice sounded over the mist. He was standing ahead of the team, almost not visible due to the mist. However, his team still complied and stood protectively around Tazuna.

Sasuke at the front and Namiko and Shino on the sides. Sasuke, since he was already recognized as an Uchiha, activated his Sharingan, _"Tch! This mist is so thick, even the Sharingan cannot neutralize it."_ It didn't help him much in the Mist though.

 _"This mist has so much chakra in it, its overloading my senses."_ Namiko thought, _"But the guy who cast it has even more chakra, so I just have to concentrate."_

Shino was experiencing issues of his own, _"My comrades are getting agitated by this much chakra in the air. I have to keep them in control."_

"Stay sharp everyone. Zabuza Momochi is the ex-leader of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. He is especially proficient in the art of silent killing." Kakashi warned.

"Silent killing?" Namiko was unaware of the term.

"As the name suggests, it happens in an instant without a sound or warning of any kind. It's so fast, you pass from this life without even realizing what happened." Kakashi explained.

They waited tensely for Zabuza to show up, all while the mist was getting thicker. At some point, the Genin lost complete sight of their sensei, making it seem like they were alone.

"Eight points." Zabuza's voice suddenly came seemingly from all directions, startling the Genin. "Larynx, Spine, Lungs, Liver, Jugular, Subclavian Artery, Kidneys, Heart. Now, which should be my kill point." Zabuza counted the vital points, using scare tatics to scare his opponents. For newly minted Genins of Team 7, it almost worked.

Almost, because as soon as Zabuza finished speaking, Kakashi released a blast of raw chakra, dissipating some of the mist making him visible to his team again.

"All of you calm down. I will protect you. I will not let my comrades die." Their sensei declared reliving some of their tension.

But Zabuza didn't want that to happen, "I wouldn't be so sure." He said, suddenly appearing in the middle of the formation the Genins had made, "Its over."

But before he could make any move, Kakashi appeared in front of him jamming a kunai in his stomach. Oddly, instead of blood coming from Zabuza's wound, clear water flowed out of it, before he himself dissolved into water.

"Sensei, he is behind you!" Namiko's warning fell short in time as Zabuza had already swung his sword and cleaved Kakashi in half. To Zabuza's surprise however, the Kakashi he cut turned into water as well.

 _"A water clone! Impossible, he copied my jutsu in that instant?"_ He thought.

In his surprise, he couldn't react as Kakashi moved behind him and placed a kunai to his neck, "Now it's over." Kakashi said.

* * *

Land of Sea with Team 11

Genins of Team 11 were intercepted by their sensei on their way to their Inn. They informed her about their interaction with the bandaged girl.

"I see. Good work on getting that information. I also heard about people being 'spirited away'. Honestly, sounds like someone is kidnapping them. This complicates the mission." Anko said, _'And it warrants HIS presence even more.'_ She thought ominously.

"Well, we can check on her later. Right now, let's see if we can meet this 'Demon of the Ocean'. I've borrowed this skiff. We will head towards Mother Island and see if we can find the Demon." She told her students. This was a dangerous endeavour since the enemy was practically unknown, but it was necessary.

* * *

On the way to Mother Island

"Umm, Sensei, its already dark. Don't you think it is dangerous to look for the demon right now?" Hinata asked. Fighting in dark was no problem for her because of her Byakugan but doing so on water surface against an unknown enemy? She was not that confident.

"You are right. But we only have this night to look for it. Tomorrow after successfully completing the mission, we will officially have no reason to stay any longer. And frankly if the mission tomorrow goes smoothly, I would rather not put you three in any more danger. I would just request a higher-level team to solve the village's demon problem. But as long as we are here, we have to try and get to the root of the problem." Anko explained.

"In ROOT, we were always taught to stick to the mission objective and complete it with utmost efficiency, neutralize any hindrances." Sai intoned his old teaching.

Anko smiled at him, "Well, this is not ROOT. Leaf village helps their clients as much as they can. We- " She was interrupted by their skiff rocking violently.

Haku, who was rowing the skiff, tried to move the oar, "It's stuck. We must have hit a rock or something. Sai, help me get it free."

Sai moved up to help when Anko warned her students, "Eyes front, everyone. We have bigger problems ahead of us."

And it was indeed a bigger problem. There was a whirlpool right ahead of them, pulling them in, almost perfectly positioned.

"Change course, Hurry!" Anko ordered.

"Wait, let me help as well." Hinata offered. She went to help them, but before she could something wrapped around her pulling her off the boat.

"Shit!" Anko cursed. "Striking Shadow Snakes." She yelled throwing her left arm as if to grab Hinata. Snakes came out of her sleeves, chasing after the caught Hyuuga, but was unable to grab her before she was pulled into the water.

Anko clicked her tongue and jumped into the water to save Hinata.

"Sai, it's hopeless. Leave it." Haku said.

Sai nodded and both jumped off the skiff onto the ocean water, using water walking skills to stand on top of the water.

Anko similarly floated to the surface and stood up with Hinata in her arms, "Showing themselves now. Be alert you two, we are being targeted from underwater."

Both nodded their heads. "Sensei, what happened to Hinata-san? She shouldn't have been knocked out so easily." Haku asked.

"Don't know. But she seemed to have lost a lot of chakra from what little I can sense. To this to have happened so fast. Whoever and whatever did this, can suck chakra really fast." Anko explained looking away when she sensed something.

"Sai, here hold her." Anko ordered. She handed Hinata over to Sai and ran towards the whirlpool. The same tentacle-like thing from before shot towards her and wrapped itself around her midriff. Anko smirked _'Gotcha'_ she thought before running through a few hand signs, "Fire Style: Fire Dragon Jutsu." She yelled and blew a huge ball of fire and lit up whatever the tentacle thing came from.

After the fire died down, she saw what looked like a burnt figure of a human. But it soon turned into water and broke down. _'Water clone!'_ She thought but couldn't react fast enough before something warped around her neck, choking her.

That something ended up being an arm. The person that arm belonged to, came up behind her and said smugly, "You let your guard down."

"Well yeah, but so did you." Before Anko's calm reply could register in his mind, he let out a scream. His arm slacked on reflex as well as due to it suddenly going numb, letting his prisoner go. This was all because Haku was able to numb his shoulder with an accurate ice cold senbon to the muscles.

Haku could not celebrate his victory however, as while the enemy in front of him retreated from Anko, he was instead grabbed from underwater. Taken by surprise, he could not struggle enough to get free before he was dragged underwater.

 _"Crap! There was another one! I… am losing...chakra…"_ Was the only thing he could think before he lost consciousness because of lack of chakra as well as air.

Anko dived underwater again to look for Haku, _'Damn! There's no visibility here.'_ With no success so she surfaced again. She was greeted by the sight of an unconscious Haku with two men standing over him. Before she could make any move to take him back, one of them started going through some handsigns, "Time to put all that Chakra I absorbed to good use.", He said before calling, "Water Style: Furious Current Jutsu." A vortex formed around Haku, sucking him in, while both enemies vanished in a water Shunshin.

"Great. This complicates things a lot." Anko lamented.

* * *

 **OMAKE STARTS HERE, YOU CAN SKIP TO THE AUTHOR NOTES DIRECTLY BY SEARCHING 'OMAKE END'.**

OMAKE 7 (This is in the canon setting)

Team 7, consisting of Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke with Kakashi as their Jounin sensei, were escorting a bridge builder back to his home in the Land of Waves.

Seeing that this was their first mission outside the village, Kakashi was walking at the complete back, so as to stop any surprise attack from behind. Naruto, because of his usual energetic self, was walking the first followed by their client, Tazuna, with Sakura and Sasuke on his two sides.

That was when Kakashi noticed a puddle on the road. He was aware that it had not rained in the past few days, so a puddle on a road under bright sunlight was unnatural. But he had something in mind for whoever was hiding in it.

As soon as he crossed the puddle, two shinobi equipped with a chain connected to the gauntlets on their hands popped out of the puddle and tied him up. Before he could use any jutsu to save himself, they yanked the chains from both sides, shredding him to pieces.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura yelled horrifically.

Sasuke immediately jumped into action. The enemy ninjas tried to wrap him in the chain as well, but he fired a kunai that nailed the chain to a tree. This forced both of them to unclasp the chain from their gauntlets. One of them went to engage Sasuke, while the other one went for their target, Tazuna.

While Sasuke was engaged with one of the Shinobis, Naruto decided to stop gaping at their appearance and stop the other one that was heading towards their client. He ran at him with a punch aimed at him but was swatted aside like a bug, getting a scratch on the back of his hand because of the clawed gauntlet.

The ninja continued towards the bridge builder, who was being protected by a shaking Sakura. He came close to them and pulled his arm back intending to run it through Sakura. Sakura closed her eyes in fright. Fortunately for her, at that moment, Kakashi, who was supposed to be dead, appeared and stopped him by putting him in a headlock, while the other ninja was already in his grasp.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura said again, but this time in relief.

"Hmm…Good work on defending the bridge builder Sakura. And you too Sasuke. But why didn't you help her when your opponent was already down?" Kakashi asked.

"Hn! She is a ninja. She should be able to take care of herself." Sasuke replied.

"Well, you are not wrong, but if she was not able to protect the bridge builder, we would have failed our mission. If you would've helped her, the chances of Tazuna dying would have been less." Kakashi explained. Just then Naruto came up and joined them. Kakashi looked at his wounded hand and said, "Naruto, these guys probably had their gauntlets coated in poison. I think we need to go back to the village and get you checked."

Tazuna looked shocked, "What? But what about me? You were supposed to escort me to my home."

Kakashi looked straight at him, "That was the mission, no? But nowhere in the mission it said that it will involve Shinobi. That makes it at least a B-rank mission, which my team is still not ready for. But since you are our responsibility, we will take you back to the village. The Hokage will assign you another mission with the proper rank with appropriately skilled Shinobi."

Tazuna was not happy to hear it, "But I don't have any money to pay for a higher-level mission. Please, I'm begging you. You see our country…" and he went on to explain how his country was going through a tyrannous rule of a shipping lord and the bridge he was making was the best hope for them.

Kakashi shook his head, "Even if you say that, with one of my genins probably poisoned and the mission being the level it is, I cannot let them go further on this mission."

Naruto seeing that he was the reason everyone was being held back, brought out a kunai and stabbed his wound, letting the blood flow out to eject the poison, "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I never back out and never give up." He exclaimed.

Kakashi looked at him shocked before he said, "That is good and all, but now you can die of blood loss." Which caused Naruto to go into a fit of hysterics.

"I think the dobe is right. We took care of these goons, we will probably be able to fight whoever more there is." Sasuke said.

"Yes, if Sasuke-kun is with us. No one can defeat us." Sakura said, who seemed to not have realized that if it was not for Kakashi, she would have already been dead. But she still somehow was able to show determination in her eyes, even with that half-assed reason.

Kakashi sighed. "Okay, I guess we can continue. But on the condition that you let me take care of the Jounin these guys are following."

* * *

They had crossed the waters between the Land of Fire and Land of Waves and were now on the way to Tazuna's home.

Naruto, in an effort of outshine Sasuke, was on a lookout for ninjas to take down. Suddenly Naruto sensed something in the bushes and threw a kunai. After some time when nothing came out Sakura got irritated, "Naruto-baka, don't scare everyone just because you want to look cool. Even if there was someone, it would be years before you can sense them before Sasuke-kun could."

Meanwhile, Kakashi went into to the bushes to look at whatever Naruto had thrown the kunai at. What he saw was a normal rabbit. Well normal for anyone who didn't know much about rabbits. " _A snow rabbit. But the colour. They only have white fur during winter, when the days are short and little sunlight. This rabbit was raised indoors away from sunlight. Which can only be for one purpose. A substitution jutsu. So, they are already here."_

Suddenly Kakashi sensed an incoming projectile and warned his team, "Look out!" before ducking to avoid it.

The projectile turned out to be a huge sword, that stuck to the tree after passing over him. As soon as the sword stuck, a tall man appeared standing over the sword handle.

Recognizing danger, Kakashi immediately sprang to his feet, "Team up! Manji formation! Protect th-"*THUCK* THUCK* He stopped on hearing those sounds. Those were the sounds he was very intimately familiar with. Those sounds always reminded him of one thing. Failure. And the fact that there were two of them, scared him to the core.

He slowly turned to see what made those noises, hoping it was not what he was thinking. But what he saw gave him mixed feelings. He did not know if he should have felt relieved that both the sound came from a single source or horrified that the source was most definitely one of his students.

When Kakashi had given the warning, Naruto was already on the ground, trying to pacify the rabbit he had scared. Sasuke immediately went into action and tackled their client to the ground. Unfortunately, Sakura did not have those fast reaction speeds. So, what greeted Kakashi was Sakura's face with pure surprise and horror etched on it. But what was worse was that Sakura's face was unnaturally lying between the heels of her feet. Sakura's torso and her lower body were not connected anymore. The huge sword had cleaved clean through her mid-section.

"Only one. And that to a fake ninja. I was hoping to get the bridge builder and be done with it. But I guess that's some less trash to care about. Not that I cared about her in the first place." Zabuza said not caring about what he just did.

Kakashi did not register Zabuza's words. He was currently reliving his past, _"Again. I let one of my teammates die again. And this was one of my students. I should have gone back before. This is my fault."_ His thoughts were spiraling deep down.

 **To be continued**

 **OMAKE END**

* * *

AN:

And that's it. I know I had decided to move this Omake from the last chapter to this one, but I made a mistake in not putting the part with Demon Brothers in it.

There's not much to say after this, just that it is very difficult to match the timelines of the missions. I had to cut short Team 8's mission to fit the timelines. The only reason Team 11's mission is the last instead of Team 7's is because most of it happens in the night while all the others happen during day time.

But anyways sorry for the late update but expect the next chapter to be fairly close. Till then, Ja ne'


	18. Struggles Continue

I know I said, 'Expect the next chapter fairly close' and I still took almost a month to finally upload it. And there is no excuse, it was mainly because I am lazy. But slow or not, I WILL be updating this story.

Now, before I start with the chapter, I want to inform everyone that the chapters from 1 to 17 will be edited and revised to make the story a good read. BUT there will NOT be any new content that will be added. So, my readers who are resuming from this chapter, do not need to re-read those chapter again. Only the writing will be improved (I hope so). You are obviously free to re-read them again, if you want (though I don't think anyone does.)

Well, now onto some reviews, this time more negatives than positive,

 **Darth Tenibris2** : Cliché? Yes, Naruto having a sister, cliché. Both having a part of Kyuubi, cliché. Civilian Council. Big cliché. They wanting to kill Naruto. Biggest cliché. Not telling Naruto about his parents. Cliché again. Yes, I already know these are clichés. I also know that the first four chapters are almost identical copies of Physcho G's Neo Yondaime Hokage. As a matter of fact, I stated that in all four chapters. I also know that the first chapter is basically the anime episode written in words. And that it deters almost 60 % of my readers from even moving onto the next chapter. But you know what. I don't care. I am writing this story because 'I' wanted to. And I am writing it as I see fit. Is getting ideas from the canon wrong? If it was, fanfiction wouldn't exist, since we are all just riding on the coattails of people like Kishimoto-sensei. Kishimoto-sensei himself probably got inspired from someone else's work. Every writer takes inspiration from somewhere. And as you wrote in your bio, (Yes I read it.) I will re-iterate those words again, 'Well you've not written anything so that makes your voice invalid.' Sorry for being un-original over there, again. The fact of the matter is, fanfiction writers are not those professional writers whose books you buy. They take their time to write, from their schedule, the story they wanted to have but didn't quite get it from someone else, instead of completely devoting themselves to the story like professional writers do. It is easy to think up all the different scenarios in your head, but when it comes to put it on a paper, or in this case screens, you realize that what was enough in your head is not enough when you write it for someone else. Other people don't know what's in your head, so you have to explain everything. And that's where every fanfic writer either lose their 'muse' or just give up on writing. The reason I used the clichés or Kishimoto-sensei's original work without much altering them is because I think they are good enough and don't need much altering. Also, I admit a small part of me being lazy too. But if I wanted to write a completely original story, then instead to writing it on the fanfic for free, I would rather try and earn my hard work.

So yeah, you can take your ' **Everything wrong with Fanfiction today:** ' and shove it up your ass, because just like me, nobody on this website cares about your opinion.

 **TheWateringWizard** : Yeah sorry about the mess that was chapter 17. But now I have divided them up, since most of the missions are coming to their end. And for your reference, the mission that team 10 is on is indeed a filler episode 195 from Naruto Shippuden.

 **Guest (Not the happy one)** : Don't want to waste much words on you, but if you have the time to write that on a story that you searched on the internet, you seem like a bigger loser than me. That was still too many words on you.

 **Happy Guest (I guessing you are the same one.) :** Anko received a different model of cursed seal than Sasuke. Hmmm. But it still had Orochimaru's soul shard in it. It was still a collection of Nature energy. I don't see how that is different. Itachi could have killed Sasuke along with Orochimaru when he took over, he gave the last of his life force to form his Susanoo and seal Orochimaru away. While he still would have died, he could have easily killed Sasuke there, even if he wasn't perfectly healthy. And all this strength without going to Orochimaru to train. Indra was never influencing anyone. Atleast completely. The root cause of Indra and Ashura's fight was Black Zetsu's manipulation. But enough with arguing about a fictional character, who could have been changed anytime Kishimoto-sensei wanted. But I will never believe that Sasuke had a more tragic life than third other Shinobi out there. He was just a kid throwing tantrums all over the world.

Enough with that, onto the story and obviously **I don't own Naruto.**

* * *

Chapter 18: Struggles Continue

With Team 7 and Zabuza

Kakashi and Zabuza were at a standstill, with the former holding the later at the edge of his kunai.

But Zabuza was nor intimated neither fazed. Instead he chuckled, "As expected of the Copy Ninja. You copied my Jutsu while you were giving your little speech. You made your clone do all the talking while you hid in the mist." He said before again dissolving into water signifying it as a water clone while the original was already behind Kakashi, "I'm not that easy to fool." The original Zabuza growled before swinging his massive sword.

Kakashi ducked just in time to avoid the sword swing but Zabuza used the momentum of the sword and spin kicked him into the air. He grabbed his sword again and ran after the still airborne Kakashi but was stopped by one of most underrated shinobi tools.

"Makibishi spikes! Trying to slow me down. As if that would work." He said before turning around and backflipping towards the lake.

Opposed to Zabuza's claim though, the spikes did help Kakashi avoid whatever attack he was going to do and allowed to him escape into the lake. But that turned about to be a bad idea too. As Kakashi surfaced from underwater he noticed too late that the water was denser than it should have been. Zabuza appeared behind him, already halfway through the handseals for his jutsu, "Fool! Water Style: Water Prison Jutsu." He yelled. Kakashi couldn't do anything to stop the ball of water from surrounding him and ended up getting caught in the jutsu.

Satisfied by his work, Zabuza chuckled, "This prison is made of water but its stronger than steel. So much for the great Kakashi." He said before looking at the remaining members of Team 7 and Tazuna and continuing, "I'll finish you off later. But first your little friends will have to be eliminated."

He made another single handseal, "Water Clone Jutsu." Several figures, namely 3, started forming from the water, slowly into the exact replicas of Zabuza himself. The clones stepped up to solid ground before one of them said, "You think wearing a headband makes you a shinobi? When you hover between life and death so many times that it doesn't even faze you anymore, then you may be called a shinobi. When you become so deadly that your profile is entered in my bingo book, then you may have earned the title of a shinobi." He casted the Hidden Mist Jutsu again while continuing, "But to call you upstarts shinobi, is nothing but a joke."

One of his clones prepared to attack using the mist but it didn't get enough time to even show a surprised expression before it was dispelled. While water clone did not have the nifty feature of transferring its memories back to the original, Zabuza and his remaining clones didn't need that to know that one of the clones was taken out.

"For someone as knowledgeable about Konoha and its shinobis, you seemed to have forgotten that a four-man cell is comprised of THREE Genins." Came Shino's monotone voice through the mist.

Zabuza's surprise didn't stop there when one his clone had to dodge an oddly silent windmill shuriken and almost bisected it. It was aimed at the first clone, who jumped over it to avoid but the shuriken changed course mid-air making an almost impossible 90-degree turn taking the clone that was standing behind the first with it. That was followed by a blast of chakra not unlike what Kakashi had done earlier, blowing away the mist again, showing the surprised and enraged look of the lone surviving water clone as well as the original Zabuza.

"Sure, we may not be in any bingo book. For now. But you won't need it from now on anyway. Cause these bunch of upstarts are gonna kick your ass." Namiko, the source of the chakra blast, declared.

 _"Tch! I underestimated them and let my guard down. Not happening again."_ Zabuza thought before he rushed at Namiko at high speed. Namiko jumped back to avoid him, but miscalculated Zabuza's total reach due his height and the massive sword and ended up being the victim of the sword.

But instead of the horrified expression that Zabuza was aiming for, the Namiko he split in half smirked and puffed into a cloud of smoke. That cloud of smoke soon turned bright before it was pushed aside by the difference in the air pressure caused by the fireball that came through it. If he was any lesser ninja, Zabuza's clone would have turned into ashes – or vapour in this case. But Zabuza was not that and managed to avoid the fireball by leaping back. Unfortunately for him as soon as his feet touched the ground it got surrounded by numerous black bugs that immediately started eating away at him. And since the bugs ate chakra and the clone was a chakra construct, it could not hold its form anymore, causing it to dispel as well.

Now left alone while holding the water prison, Zabuza gritted his teeth. He never expected the idealistic village like Konoha to train Genins strong enough to take on his clones. Granted that he seriously underestimated them and that resulted in two of his clones getting destroyed, add in the fact that the clones only had 20 percent of his strength, but he still could not deny the fact that these brats were stronger than he thought. Moreover, he trapped himself by using the water prison on Kakashi. He could make some clones to distract the brats while another kills the bridge builder, but he was very angry at being proven wrong in his assumption.

He still went to make more water clones, but Namiko had already sensed the chakra build up, "I won't let you!" she yelled before punching the ground hard effectively breaking the ground apart as well as destabilize the water surface preventing Zabuza from making any clone.

"Now, Sasuke!" Namiko signalled.

Sasuke had already prepared the jutsu he wanted to cast, "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu." Unlike the Great Fireball where a big fireball was shot at the enemy, Sasuke fired several small balls at high speed at Zabuza.

"Foolish Genin! Fire jutsu won't work against someone like me!" Zabuza declared, "Water Style: Water Wall." He was able to cast due the water stabilizing.

The small balls of fire hit the water wall and naturally got extinguished. But Zabuza didn't anticipate the shurikens that were hidden inside the fireballs. They broke through the water wall and continued towards Zabuza. His survival instincts kicked in and he jumped away to save himself from the speeding ninja stars.

But the consequences of doing so was now standing once more, freed due to Zabuza taking his hands off the water prison.

"Nicely done team. Now leave the rest to me." The now free from his prison Kakashi said.

Zabuza glared at the white haired Jounin, "Hah! I got distracted and lost my grip on the water prison." He claimed.

Kakashi glared back, "Don't flatter yourself. They forced you to let go." He rebutted.

Both stared at each other for a moment before starting a long chain of hand seals. Zabuza was shocked to see Kakashi perform the same handseals as him at the same time. Both did the last seal simutanesimult and yelled, "Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu."

The water between them swirled a little before two big dragons made of water formed and started a fight of dominance causing water to overflow onto the land. The two dragons collided with each other showering everyone with water while Kakashi and Zabuza were locked in a fight of a single kunai versus Zabuza's huge sword.

 _"There's something wrong. The Sharingan can copy and replicate the enemy's move. But both jutsu occurred simultaneously. But how?"_ Zabuza thought. He jerked his sword pushing Kakashi away while he himself stepped back. He ran around and did another handseal. To his surprise, Kakashi copied him to the T without any delay.

 _"It's as if he knows what I'm.."_

"Going to do next?" Kakashi completed Zabuza's thoughts shocking him even more.

 _"What? Is he reading my mind as well?"_ He thought looking at the spinning tomoes of Kakashi's Sharingan, _"He looks at me with that eye.."_

"It makes you furious, doesn't it?" Kakashi finished Zabuza's thoughts again making him furious.

"Hah! All you are doing is copying me. Like a monkey." "You can't beat me with cheap tricks. I'll crush you." Kakashi and Zabuza declared the last part at the same time infuriating Zabuza even more. He started making handseals faster than before, "Argh! When I'm finished with you, you'll never open that monkey mouth again."

Kakashi copied him again, but this time instead to finishing the handseals together, he finished them first, "Water Style: Giant Vortex Jutsu."

A ring of water formed around Kakashi before shooting towards Zabuza.

"What? Impossible!" Zabuza was able to blurt out before he was swept by the strong vortex. _"But how? I was just going to create a vortex, but he did it first!"_

The scale of the jutsu was such that water spilled out of the lake in great quantity uprooting trees with its mass. Zabuza could not hope to stop himself from being washed away with the current. Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, he was slammed into a tree stopping him from being swept away any further.

Kakashi fired a few kunais at Zabuza's joints to stop him from moving. But before the kunai could find their mark, a white blur shot out and grabbed Zabuza before disappearing into the forest.

"Shit! I didn't concentrate on the others during the fight." Namiko cursed preparing herself to give a chase but was stopped by Kakashi, "Stop Namiko! It's no use."

"But Sensei they- " Namiko wanted to argue.

"Let them go. We may know they were there, but they are still unknowns to us. Also, they are still fresh while we are already worn down from our fight. It may be disadvantages for us to chase them. Plus, our mission is the guard Tazuna, not to hunt them." Kakashi explained.

Namiko hesitated before nodding. She could still sense whoever it was that took Zabuza. They were very fast as they were already almost out of her sensing range.

Kakashi pulled his headband back in its place covering his right eye before saying, "Okay. Let's move out. We need to bring the bridge builder back to his bridge."

Tazuna rubbed the back of his head embarrassingly, "Sorry I caused all this trouble for you. But as compensation you can rest up in my house when we get to the village."

Kakashi nodded and started walking. However as soon as Kakashi took a step, his whole body cramped up causing him to fall flat to the ground.

"Kakashi-sensei!", Namiko yelled in worry but her sensei was already out of it.

* * *

With Team 3 at the Katabami Gold mine

When Team 3 reached the 'Burial Ground' the old man told them about they found close to ten people surrounding a casket. There was no doubt in what or who the casket held but to make sure, "Neji, you're up!" Guy asked his student to check.

"Alright! Byakugan!" Neji used the penetrative ability of his Kekkei-Genkai to see inside the casket. "It's alright. He is still alive." He informed.

"That's good news, but we don't know how long he has inside, so we shall show these goons our youth as fast as possible and rescue him. Okay team, let's go!" Guy ordered.

Immediately his team went into action. Tenten, being a literal walking armoury, threw a few smoke bombs to distract the bandits. The bandits were alarmed by the smoke bombs.

"We are under attack!" One of them said. Three claw-like blades came out from the back of the gloves he was wearing. Every bandit seemed to be armed with the same thing.

"Tenten, take care of two those on the right!" Guy ordered.

"Right!" Tenten agreed. She unsealed a Three-part staff or a Sansetsukon. She joined the three parts to turn it into a solid staff and hit one of the bandits in the face. She immediately spun around turning her staff again into three parts again, before hitting the second bandit in the ribs effectively neutralizing both of them.

Neji, with his Byakugan, saw two enemies approaching from behind him. He hit one of them directly on the chest with a chakra powered Palm Strike while kicking the other one in the face following it up with a similar Palm Strike in the midsection, since unlike his cousin, he still couldn't block chakra points using his feet.

"Dynamic Entry!" Guy yelled and kicked a charging enemy in the face, making him go airborne before coming down and slamming into two other bandits taking out three of them in a single strike.

"Sensei, there are three more of them." Neji warned just as another one jumped from a tree behind them. Guy easily stepped back to avoid him and kicked him away.

Another bandit burst out from the ground and rushed at them but was also taken out by Lee.

"Do not forget the Handsome Green Devil." He exclaimed. He saw the last one of the bandits hide behind a tombstone and charged at him. He cocked his arm back for a punch, but he stopped his fist right before he hit him. He recognized that face.

The terrified bandit couldn't stand any longer and fell back, knocking off the hood covering his face back.

"It is really you." Lee said. His team joined him moments later. Guy recognized the person on the ground, but the other two of his students didn't.

"Who is this guy?" Tenten asked.

"He is… this is Karashi." Lee answered.

"So, this is the guy grandma Sanshou told us about." Tenten said.

On hearing his mother's name, Karashi folded his arms and looked away.

"Karashi, is it true what grandma Sanshou said? You chose to join the Kurosuki family?" Lee inquired.

"Well, so what if I did? What of it?" He replied making Lee scowl, "What? Sure, I did. Their leader is a great man. He took the entire gold mine back from those evil men. And he liberated the whole village." He explained.

"How can you do this to her? That poor old woman worries about you all day long, while she stands there cooking that curry!" Tenten yelled at him.

"Wait Tenten, let me handle this." Lee requested. Seeing this unprecedented seriousness in him made Tenten relent to his request.

"Karashi, that was more than just a delicious curry you used to make. It literally saved my life. You have a gift. You would give that up to join this people, who do not care about human life? How can you?" Lee tried to reason with him.

Karashi though was not fazed, "Hmph! What did I ever get for sweating over that stupid pot all day? Nothing. Joining the Kurosuki, I became a part of something bigger. Something powerful and feared. I'm important now. Not some nobody stuck in the kitchen of a stinky little curry shop."

This enraged the whole team, but not anyone more than Lee. He punched Karashi in the face and knocked him back.

"Karashi, not only did you bring me back from the brink of death with your curry but taught me a lesson I've never forgotten. You taught me that if you put your heart and soul into something, anything can happen, you can change the world. I learned that even someone like me can achieve great things if I tried hard enough. That was your gift. You say you want to be powerful and respected. You were a better man then." Lee told him while reminiscing their first meeting.

"Turn back Karashi. You must turn away from this path you have taken." Lee warned.

Karashi already looked like he was on the verge of crying. He got on his knees and looked at the ground, "Y-you are right. I've been a fool." He admitted, "Forgive me."

"Good. Glad to have you back on board." Lee said.

Everyone was startled by some knocking coming from behind them.

"Help! Please get me out of here. It's dark." Came Rokusuke's voice from the casket.

"Oh man. We completely forgot about that Rokusuke guy!" Tenten yelled.

They hurried and opened the box to free Rokusuke. As soon as the lid came off, he sat up and took huge gulps of air. He looked at the ninjas assembled around him and noticed the Leaf Village insignia on their headbands. "You are from the Leaf village. I'm so happy to see that the village responded to my request so fast. I left as soon as I registered the request. They already had my friend and the thought of him buried alive... I just had to try and save him."

"Yeah, we know how you feel." Lee said.

Tenten noticed that Neji was not paying attention to their conversation anymore and was staring in a different direction. Guy noticed it too, "What is it Neji?" He asked.

Neji though didn't respond. _"What is this feeling? This sudden sense of danger."_ He thought worryingly. He tried to peer at a far cliff, but a sudden vision made him jerk back alarming his teammates.

"What's wrong Neji? What happened?" Guy asked him again.

"We are being watched. I think it's Raiga." He replied this time.

"Where?" His sensei inquired.

"From the top of that cliff." Neji answered.

Guy nodded, "We have completed one of our objectives and rescued Karashi. It's time we complete the mission. Let's go, Team. Karashi, you take care of Rokusuke and bring him to the curry shop."

They left on Karashi's affirmative.

* * *

Raiga Kurosuki, a former member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, watched his men being taken out one by one by the Leaf Village Ninjas. Presently those ninjas were heading towards him after they interrupted the magnificent burial he had arranged for Rokusuke.

"What do you think, Ranmaru?" He asked seemingly no one.

"It seems someone among them has eyes that can see at long distances. I think he has a Kekkei-Genkai." Came a voice from his back.

"You mean, he can see us?" Raiga asked again.

"No. My powers are still stronger than his." Answered the voice.

Raiga saw the team of shinobis reach the cliff he was previously overlooking from. He smirked before casting the signature technique from his previous affiliation, "Ninja Art: Hidden Mist Jutsu."

The whole cliff started to get covered in a thick mist. He saw the team look around, before oldest one, probably Jounin, explained them about his jutsu.

"Amazing. That person also has the ability to see chakra network. But don't worry, he still cannot see us." The voice from Raiga's back said.

Raiga nodded, "Good."

* * *

With Team 3

"Neji, you really can't see anything?" Tenten asked him.

Neji was trying his hardest to see through the mist, "I've never seen any Jutsu stronger than the Byakugan." He answered.

"The Hidden Mist Jutsu…" Guy thought out loud before snapping his fingers, "Aha! I remember now." He exclaimed happily before turning serious, "Raiga Kurosuki. I finally figured out his identity after seeing this mist. He is a former member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist Village."

All his Genins were shocked. That meant they were fighting a very high-level opponent. But before they could rethink any strategy, a beam of lighting went up into the sky which somehow ended up summoning even more thunderclouds. With that many thunderclouds gathered in one place, a bolt of lightning came crashing down on the surprised Team 3.

* * *

"Hahahaha! Blew 'em to bits. Blew 'em to bits and I'm not sad in the least. I knew I can't hold a funeral for them, not when I'm feeling like this!" Raiga madly exclaimed while looking at the dust that was slowly clearing from the crater formed by his lightning attack.

"Raiga, all of them are still alive." The voice that was with Raiga informed.

"Impossible. Not after my Lighting Fang hit them. No, sorry. If you say they are alive there can't be any doubt about it."

* * *

Indeed, all of Team 3 was successful in avoiding the lightning bolt of death.

"Hah! My training to fight against fast lighting attacks to best my Eternal Rival has finally borne fruit." Gai exclaimed happily.

Meanwhile Neji was in deep thought, _"The enemy was close, but I couldn't see him. I know it's the hidden mist jutsu but my Byakugan should be able to penetrate it."_ He activated his Byakugan again to try and find the cause of the interference.

 _"I see them now."_ He thought when he was able to see the enemy's chakra network again. "Sensei, I see more enemies. Two enemies to the South-west, three to the South-east, one in the same direction but further at the back and a last one to the North-west." Neji reported his team.

"Right, let's take out these unyouthful people before we take care of Raiga." His sensei said before leaving their hiding position towards wherever Neji said were three enemies. His team followed suit.

"Dynamic Entry!" Gai yelled performing his and Lee's signature flying kick, aimed at one of the bandits, hopefully, since he couldn't exactly see anything in the mist. When he did hit it something, he was surprised when it gave away and he found himself standing on a rubble which, before he kicked it, was a complete rock. He looked around to find two more rocks beside it.

Tenten went for the pair of bandits that were on the South-west direction. She took a few Shurikens and threw them with as much accuracy as she could. The thunk sounds of the Shurikens hitting wood would have made her happy in the training grounds. But here she was expecting much more muted ones. When she came to check, she found her Shurikens stuck to two trees.

Neji himself was bewildered to find the enemy he just used his Gentle fist on not being an enemy at all. He was fighting a tree as well. _"What? Impossible."_ He turned his Byakugan on again and saw the chakra network of a person holding a kunai. But as soon as he turned his Byakugan off, the person changed back to a tree. _"Why?"_

"Somebody help me!" Came Lee's voice from somewhere on the cliff. Neji looked towards the voice and saw Lee hanging from a tree branch. He turned his Byakugan back on and again saw a person holding onto Lee's leg.

 _"What is this? Chakra networks running through illusions?"_ He bewilderedly thought.

Suddenly an electric shock ran through the ground and hit the whole team except Guy. He indeed had trained to avoid any and all kinds of lightning attacks and sensed the electricity oddly running through the ground and jumped up before it could shock him. He though had to immediately block a sword strike from the enemy who had finally decided to show himself.

"Finally, you show yourself, Raiga Kurosuki." Guy said as he eyed his cloak covered opponent.

"Hmm, something tells me you have some memories of me. Sadly, I do not have any memory of you to think about. So, there will be no funeral for you, I will just dice you up." Raiga said as he charged at Guy with his swords. He imbued his blades with chakra, making them emit lighting.

Guy had to dodge all of Raiga's sword swipes. The fang like pronged swords had visible lightning running through them and Guy knew it wasn't a good idea to block them with of kunai or by his hands. But he couldn't win by just dodging, so he dodged a straight down swipe from Raiga by rolling sideways on the ground to get behind him and gave a high kick to his back.

Raiga, on instinct, shifted slightly forward to avoid the kick, but it managed to tear off the back to his cloak, flinging off what looked like zip-up bag away from him.

"RANMARU!" "RAIGA!" yelled both Raiga and whatever or whoever was inside the bag.

By this time Neji as well as Tenten had already recovered from the numbness due to the shock they got.

"What is that?" Tenten asked.

Neji used his Byakugan again to see what was inside the bag, "I see chakra network. I would say there is someone in there, but in light of recent events we should make sure properly." He replied.

"RANMARU!" Raiga yelled again in panic. Guy noticed the concern he had for whoever was in that bag but couldn't let this chance go. Since Raiga was still facing away from him, he kicked him in the back again this time successfully hitting him and flung him across the field.

Unfortunately for Guy, Raiga was flung very close to the still unconscious Lee. Without wasting any moment, Raiga crouched close to Lee's prone figure and aimed both of his blade over his head and heart.

"Stop! Give Ranmaru back to me, or I kill this one." He threatened.

But before his threat could affect the others, he was kicked aside by Lee himself, somehow managing to do it with getting cut by the blades hovering so close to him.

Raiga got up after being kicked and gritted his teeth. He was in a very bad position. And more importantly, Ranmaru was taken away from him and was now in danger. He had to do something. That is when he saw it. Lee was indeed standing, but he was doing so sloppily, and his eyes were still closed.

 _"Is he fighting in his sleep?"_ He thought before blocking a kick from Guy again. In his worry for Ranmaru, he had forgotten about the main problem.

"It seems you have gotten weaker over the years. Or your dependence on whoever it is in the bag has made you so. No matter, I shall use my youth to finally end your tyranny on the people of this village." Guy said before crossing his arms in front on him.

"Eight Inner Gates: First Gate: Gate of Opening: Open!" He yelled before an intense pressure blasted out of his body, blowing away the remaining mist.

Raiga took a step back, "That technique," He started with wide eyes, "I remember that technique. An old guy used that technique against our squad during the Third Ninja War. Yes, I remember it. He had already killed four of us before we were able to take him down."

"Indeed. That person was my father. Might Duy. But don't misunderstand. I do not blame you for his death. We were at war and the only thing to blame is the war. This is not my revenge. I am just finishing a mission given to me by my kage. Just as you were doing back then." Guy said before he disappeared from Raiga's view. The next thing Raiga knew, he was flying through the air courtesy of a kick to the chin. Guy appeared behind him in the air and grabbed him with both his arms and legs. They then started spinning and plummeted straight towards the ground head first.

"Front Lotus!" Guy yelled and released Raiga just before he collided with the ground with a loud boom. The technique ended up burying Raiga head first into the ground, unmoving. Unfortunately, the edge of the cliff couldn't take the beating and ended up breaking and crumbling away down into the valley taking Raiga's body with it.

"NO!" the person in the bag yelled in vain.

This finally woke Lee up, "huh? Uh? I had a very strange dream, where I was fighting the enemy."

"You were fighting an enemy, Lee. In your sleep." Tenten sighed.

The main problem being taken care of, Guy walked to the discarded bag, "So, who is in there Neji?" He asked.

"I believe this is one who was being Raiga's eyes." Neji answered before kneeling and unzipping the bag.

Even though everyone already knew that there was a person inside, they were still shocked to see a boy who looked no more than 10 years old.

"So, wait a moment. The person who I was fighting in my sleep, was it you I fought?" Lee asked.

The boy shook his head, "No. It was me and Raiga. Together. We have always been together from the moment Raiga found me. I was an orphan in the village and was born with a weak body, so I couldn't move much. I survived because the villagers took pity on me and brought me food every once in a while. But after they became aware of my powers, they started hating me and I was left alone." He explained shocking the team.

"That night, Raiga came for a mission for his village. He had already killed all the villagers and had come to kill me. But when told him how him and I are the same, he took me in. Since then we have been together, with me being Raiga's eyes. He took me to see many places, he became my legs. We were trying the find the meaning of our lives, with each other. And we were convinced that we had found the answer. But now that Raiga is gone, there is no meaning to my life anymore. So please kill me as well." Ranmaru requested.

His request put the whole team in a sombre mood. Technically he was an accomplice of Raiga and thus was a convict of similar crimes. At the same time, he was so young that killing him now would take away his chance to atone for those crimes.

"Ranmaru, was it?" Neji started, "I don't know how close you were to Raiga, but I can tell you this. When someone close to you dies, it is your responsibility to live for them and move on instead of sticking to the past. There are lots of reason to why we are given life. A dear friend told me this a few years ago." He finished with a nostalgic smile.

Guy looked at his student with a smile of his own. He had heard how Neji used to blame his father's death on fate and used to use it as a crutch for everything. But thanks to a pair of twins, he had changed.

"Our mission was to drive out the Kurosuki family from the gold mine. With Raiga out of the picture, little Ranmaru here won't pose any problem." Guy declared making his team smile before he became serious, "Unfortunately, with their leader gone, it will be difficult to predict what the remnants of the Kurosuki family will do. Neji what is the status of the rest of them."

Neji nodded. He activated his Byakugan again and relayed what he saw to his sensei.

* * *

With the rest of the Villagers

Karashi was waiting with Rokusuke and the other villagers for any news on the Konoha team. That's when he saw someone limping down the cliff. He strained to see who it was and saw a bloodied Neji limping down with quite a difficulty, holding one of his arms.

 _"So, sir Raiga was able to take out most of them. He truly is powerful."_ He thought.

Rokusuke got up to warn the incoming ninja but Karashi stopped him, "You will keep your mouth shut, if you know what is good for you."

"Karashi, I thought you had repented." The old man from before said.

"Hah! Like I would go back to that stinking curry shop." Karashi huffed out before signalling someone.

Suddenly, rocks came rolling down the hill at Neji. Because of the combined effect of being taken by surprise as well as his injuries, he could not move away from the rocks and ended up getting buried under them.

"Haa! You see that. Even without sir Raiga's awesome might the Kurosuki family is everlasting." Karashi declared confidently.

His confidence was shattered though, when instead of his comrades joining him on their feet, mostly joined him by falling from the cliff on their backs or front or even on their heads. He looked up in surprise to see what happened and saw Team 3 standing triumphantly.

"Good work Neji! That was a most youthful show of your mastery of the Shadow Clone technique." Guy exclaimed.

"Yeah well, I didn't really like the memories of being crushed by boulders though." Neji complained but with a smile on his face, _"And those two get this kind of feeling on daily basis. As useful as this jutsu is, it comes with some heavy costs which are not necessarily related to chakra."_ He thought additionally.

Tenten giggled, "It was your idea though, so you can't complain."

* * *

Below them the other villager were now tearing into Karashi.

"Well Karashi, what do you have to say for yourself?" Rokusuke asked angrily.

"uh, it was uh… just a joke." Karashi weakly whimpered.

"You think, we'll believe this was just a joke? You have tormented this whole village." The old man accused.

"Bu…but I didn't have any other choice. If I didn't do what they told me, I would have been killed by the Kurosukis." Karashi tried to excuse.

"Well, instead of the Kurosukis, I'll do the job with a blow from my hammer." Another villager yelled angrily at him, others following suit.

They prepared to start beating him before Lee showed up and stood between them and Karashi.

"Please Lee, out of our way." Rokusuke requested.

Lee kneeled on the ground and bowed his head, "You should strike me instead, until you are satisfied." He declared.

"But why would we punish you?" The old man asked.

"At one time, Karashi was a kind hearted innocent young man and I am partly responsible for him joining the gang of thugs like he did. It is because of my words that he came to think that power is everything." He explained.

Karashi, trying to save to himself, agreed to whatever Lee said, "R…Right. That's what it was. I knew it was wrong, but I had to do it anyway."

He though was shot down by the others. Lee meanwhile continued, "It is true, Karashi was naïve. But even so, he has a rare ability to make life saving curry. Please let Karashi atone for his sins. And also, if Karashi ever goes astray again, there will be consequences." He declared raising his fist dangerously close to Karashi's face making him flinch, "I swear, I will punish him with my two fists."

With his declaration the villagers started to discuss between themselves. Some where of the mind to punish Karashi themselves, while a few were okay with leaving him to Lee and others. But after some time, they came to their decision, "I guess, we can leave Karashi to Lee and grandma Sanshou to deal with."

Happy with their decision, Lee pulled Karashi to ground making him kneel as well, "Thank you all very much." Lee said with Karashi doing the same albeit weakly.

"And with that our mission is pretty much complete." Tenten said.

"No, not just yet." Neji stated.

* * *

Before coming down to check on the villagers, Team 3 had decided to imprison Ranmaru after tying him up, mostly to keep him from killing himself. And now that the villagers were safe and the remaining Kurosuki family thugs taken care of, they came back to decide what to do with Ranmaru.

"You alright?" Neji asked, entering the shack in which they had kept Ranmaru.

"What does is matter, if I'm feeling alright or not? I can't go on living all alone like these." Ranmaru said with a sad smile, "I was his eyes and ears and he was my arms and legs. But without Raiga there to care for me, its same as losing my own body."

"I see. So Raiga was able to become one of the Seven Swordsmen, because he was able to borrow power from Ranmaru." Neji concluded.

"But that means that Raiga was just using him!" Lee exclaimed.

Guy shook his head at that, "No Lee. Remember I have encountered Raiga as a part of Seven Ninja Swordsmen before, and I know for sure at that time Ranmaru-kun wasn't with him. And the way he was worried about Ranmaru-kun during our fight, I can say that Raiga wasn't using Ranmaru-kun at all."

"It doesn't matter to me, whether Raiga was using me or not. Because I'm just a tool to sense things out anyway." Ranmaru said.

Guy looked at him with pity in his eyes, "Ranmaru-kun, it is true that Shinobis are just tools to be used by the villages or anyone superior. But that doesn't mean they cannot have feelings. In fact, the feeling to protect someone or something is what makes a Shinobi strong. It was same with Raiga as well." He said surprising Ranmaru, "If you have the same feelings for him, then instead of giving up on your life, you should strive harder to survive, not only for yourself but also for Raiga."

Lee was crying anime tears while writing everything thing Guy said in his notes, "Guy-sensei. You are so full of wisdom." He gave a thumbs up to the surprised Ranmaru and said, "Guy-sensei is right. And if you want to survive on your own, you have to give it your all. And you can start by having some of the curry of life. It saved my life after all."

While Ranmaru had no idea what 'curry of life' was, Lee's teammates instantly got horrified expressions. "Wait a sec. Won't spicy curry hurt his body." Tenten more stated than asked. While Neji just trembled at the memory of it.

Lee and his sensei didn't pay them mind though. He released Ranmaru from his bindings and hoisted him on his back, "I swear, till the day you can walk on your own, I, Rock Lee, will be your body." Lee claimed shocking Ranmaru even more.

"That's it, Lee. That is the most youthful thing I've heard this whole day. I'm so proud of you." Guy stated giving his signature thumbs up to Lee.

"Alright, but I have a favour to ask." Ranmaru relented.

* * *

Team 3 and Ranmaru were on the cliff overlooking the valley Raiga fell into after he was defeated by Guy. They were asked by Ranmaru to let him check on Raiga for the last time.

Neji used his Byakugan to check any signs of life in Raiga, "Nothing, I sense no life in Raiga."

"Can you see anything, Ranmaru?" Lee asked.

Ranmaru used his own Doujutsu, making his eyes glow. He looked at Raiga and smiled, before changing his expression.

"Is everything okay?" Lee asked him again.

Ranmaru just nodded.

"Okay Team, let's go back to Grandma Sanshou's shop and get some of that curry of life in Ranmaru-kun." Guy told his team who followed him.

* * *

With Team 10 in Baji's citadel

Shikamaru with Chouji and Ino were currently surrounded by the numerous bandits commanded by Baji. Baji himself though was quite perplexed by their infiltration of his citadel despite all the security measures.

"Why didn't the forts warn us?" Baji asked the bandit who brought him the news.

"T…the shinobi just showed up out of nowhere, that's all I know." The bandit answered.

"Those three forts are there to prevent just this sort of thing. It's impossible to get past them." Baji said disbelievingly. He turned to Tofu and grabbed him by his collar, "Are you a double agent? Did you conspire with the men of those forts to let these ninjas in?" He asked angrily.

"No, no way. I swear I'd never do that. You gotta believe me." Tofu said while squirming in Baji's grasp.

Baji let him go, making him fall to the ground, "Talk is cheap."

"W…wait! I know. They still think that I have been captured, right? If you can convince them to give up one from their group for me as a hostage exchange, then I'll be able to stall them and feed you inside information." Tofu suggested.

Baji thought about it for a while before saying, "Not a bad idea. After all, keeping you here does me no good. And if I can exchange you for their leader, I can crush 'em along with their plans. After all, the more cards that I have to play in this game the better."

* * *

Meanwhile, Shikamaru and his two teammates were waiting for Baji's next move, all the while Shikamaru was planning their next step in his head.

 _"The most likely move that Baji would play now will be a hostage exchange. That will allow me to get close to the village elder's granddaughter. But Ino and Chouji do not have enough fire power to stall the bandits long enough for me to make the rescue. We need Asuma-sensei for that."_

"Shikamaru, what's the plan now?" Ino asked him breaking him from his thoughts.

"We'll take advantage of their next move." He answered her. Ino waited for him to continue, but when he didn't, she got a tick mark on her forehead.

"And that will be?" She asked again.

"My guess is, a hostage exchange." He replied.

"A hostage exchange. Y-you mean one of u-us have to be those bandits' new hostage." Chouji said scared of the idea.

Shikamaru looked back at his friend and assured him, "Don't worry, they'll most probably target me. And that is what we want."

"B-but how will we get you out then?" Chouji was still worried about his best friend.

Shikamaru smirked, "I'm sure you'll figure it out. You just wait for sensei." He said confusing both his teammates as they didn't exactly know where their sensei was at the moment.

At that moment the door to the citadel opened showing the bandit leader Baji holding Tofu by his scuff.

"Shikamaru!", He called, "If you want to save him, then you would choose to take his place and become my captive instead."

"Hmph! Just as I was expecting." Shikamaru said stepping forward.

Baji saw the pineapple haired Genin step forward and guessed he was Shikamaru, "So Shikamaru, what's your answer?" He asked while making a unique handseal with both his hands behind his back.

"Okay. Sounds good." Shikamaru answered while walking forward.

Baji smirked internally, _"He answered my question. Ninja art: Muting Jutsu, mutes anyone who answers my question."_

Surely after taking a few steps, Shikamaru felt something in his throat.

 _"What th…? My voice is gone."_ He panicked inside.

Tofu got up and walked forward towards the rest of Team 10, while Shikamaru was contemplating on what to do.

 _"I cannot speak."_ He thought looking back at his teammates, _"I just have to have faith in them."_ He looked forward again and continued walking.

Ino and Chouji saw him looking at them before turning. This confused Ino, "What? What now? He didn't tell us anything." She said.

Chouji though had a serious expression, "Ino, Shikamaru will never take a step like that without a plan. We have to believe in him." He said before putting his hand on her back. Ino looked at him nod and got what he was implying.

She formed the handseal for her family's secret jutsu and pointed at Shikamaru, "Mind Transfer Jutsu." She whispered before her body relaxed on Chouji's support.

Shikamaru felt a jerk to his body before he smiled just as he crossed Tofu.

When Tofu reached the two remaining genins he saw the girl standing with her eyes closed almost like she was unconscious while the fat kid held her up. He nonetheless kept his act up. He rubbed the back of his head, "I'm sorry for all the trouble that I've caused."

Chouji was thinking, whether to call Tofu on his act or keep it going. But seeing as Ino wasn't still back in her body, he decided it would be better to prolong the act a bit longer, "Don't worry. I'm sure Shikamaru and sensei will be able to think of something." He said.

"But Shikamaru is now with Baji, I don't think there's anything he could do now." Tofu said.

Suddenly Ino's body jerked and she opened her eyes and stood up on her own. She saw Tofu standing with them while the other bandits still surrounded them. Looking at Tofu she could see that Chouji had to still let him know that they were onto him. Since they needed to wait for their sensei anyway, she decided to wait as well.

* * *

Baji took Shikamaru to the where he had kept the village elder's granddaughter.

"How did you get past the forts?" Baji asked Shikamaru.

Shikamaru's body jerked but he didn't say anything. Baji misunderstood this as his try in speaking.

"Oh right, you are still under my Justu." Baji said before making a handseal, "Release!"

As soon as Shikamaru got his voice back, he looked at the captive girl, "Hey, it's going to be alright now." He assured her.

Baji got irritated when he was ignored, "I asked, how did you bypass the forts?"

Shikamaru looked at Baji and smirked, "That part was easy. All of us were suspicious of Tofu all along. So, we placed a mini-wireless on him. And as we expected, he said the password, not knowing we were listening on him."

"But I've never trusted passwords. Those men have strict orders, even if someone gives the correct passwords." Baji stated.

"Maybe. But it seems they are not as suspicious as you are. All we had to do was tell them, 'A spy who knows the password should have come through before us. We are after him.' And just like that, they let us in." Shikamaru explained.

Baji was shocked, "What!?"

"It was a childish trick, but it worked so who cares." Shikamaru taunted.

Baji was furious. His impenetrable forts were taken down by childish pranks. Still he smiled, "Well, you're definitely no child, I'll give you that Shikamaru. But still even if you are a smart tactician, you are just a prisoner now. And I have my own strategy, that will wipe out the rest of your genin friends."

Baji's confession scared the girl with them, but Shikamaru reassured her, "Don't worry. My friends will be here any minute now to save us."

Baji scoffed at that, "Don't bother trying to put on a brave act. Ninjutsu may be powerful, but there is no way to destroy this place without harming the hostage. That's the whole point of having a hostage." He said before he realized something, "Hold on! If you knew Tofu was my spy, why did you agree to a hostage exchange?" He asked.

Shikamaru's smirk never left his face, "Who knows?"

As if answering his question, the whole citadel started to shake. Baji went to the window to look out and was shocked to see another ninja join the ranks of Genin.

"What? Who is that?" Baji asked quite surprised.

"Hmm…I think Asuma-sensei has just arrived." Shikamaru answered him.

Baji stepped back in fear, _"I completely forgot about the Jounin."_ But he controlled himself, "Is this an assault or is this a divisionary tactic? Either way as long as there are hostages involved, a full-on attack is impossible. And your friends still lack the jutsu to pinpoint our location. So I still have the upper hand here. There's no way you can win."

Shikamaru's smirk though seemed to be quite stubborn. The little girl noticed this, "You look so calm. You even seem to be enjoying this."

That changed Shikamaru's expression into a surprised one, "Really? I do?"

"Aren't you scared of what might happen?" She asked.

"No way." Shikamaru answered, "Because I have faith in my friends."

Baji sneered, "Don't get cocky, kid. I still have the upper hand here. I can escape by using my hostage as a shield. You see, as long as I have the village elder's granddaughter with me, I can negotiate my way out. And if I can escape before your teammates come here, your plans won't mean a thing."

Shikamaru looked affronted, "You would abandon your men like that?"

Baji grinned, "Those men down there? What a laugh. You just don't get it. Once I escape, I can form a new gang anytime I want." He said before he had to jump back to avoid getting caught up in the blast that came from below them.

Shikamaru too jumped back and shielded the hostage girl from the blast.

"Shikamaru!""Shikamaru!" both Chouji and Ino yelled, emerging from the blast.

"Are you alright?" Ino asked when she spotted him.

"Yeah, just barely." He answered lazily.

"Well, how do you think we feel? You sure scared us." She spat back.

Baji got up from the debris and was surprised to see two other genins in the room, "H-how did you find us?" He asked.

"She is from the Yamanaka clan of the Hidden leaf and they have a very powerful hidden jutsu called the Mind Transfer Jutsu. I'm sure you've at least heard of it before." Shikamaru replied.

"Mind transfer Jutsu?"

"During the exchange, Ino used the jutsu on me to take control of my body. Then she looked through my eyes and located our position." He explained further.

"Oh, give me a break. You act like we already had everything planned? You are just lucky that I figured out what you had in mind." Ino said.

"Yeah, it was touch and go there. And thankfully Asuma-sensei arrived just in time to help us and make a diversion." Chouji added.

Baji was getting angry at the careless banter happening in his presence and also at being out witted, "But that's crazy. How could you possibly know that I would call for a hostage exchange and trade Tofu for you?" He asked.

"Well, when a player loses a card, he wants to replace it, doesn't he?" Shikamaru replied.

That infuriated Baji even more as well as confuse him, "A card?" He questioned.

"Well, in this case, the card you lost were actually those three forts that we bypassed. Once they were out of play, you needed to replace them as quickly as possible. And the easiest and the fastest way to do that."

"Was through an exchange of hostage." Baji realized incredulously.

"You are a tactician. You analyse every bit of data you get, and your top priority is figuring out your enemies' strategy. Because of that I knew right of the bat you would target me." Shikamaru finished his explanation.

Baji was gritting his teeth during this all. He couldn't believe he was outwitted by a mere genin. But he had another trump card. He grinned, "Simply amazing. And you beat me, I've got to hand it to you." He said while slowly backing away.

Shikamaru scowled at him, "Nothing I did was amazing. What is really amazing is that my friends believe in me no matter what."

"Shut up!" Baji yelled while shrugging off the overcoat he was wearing, showing big paper bombs all over his body. He gave a mad chuckle, "Try to make a move against me and I'll set these off and blow you up. You hear me, make a move and I-" He stopped abruptly as his body froze up.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu complete." Shikamaru said.

* * *

Asuma had already neutralized all the bandits when his team came out of the citadel with the village elder's granddaughter beside them as well as who he guessed was Baji caught in the Nara clans Shadow Possession Jutsu.

He took Baji and peeled off all the paper bombs from his body, before tying him up with rest of his men.

"That was quite a risk you took Shikamaru. Taking actions without relaying your strategy to the others. Despite that, the mission ended successfully. So nice job." He told his genin.

"Thanks, but it really wasn't a risk. You see, I knew what Ino and Chouji can accomplish and I had faith at what we can achieve together. I didn't have to tell them a thing, I knew these guys will know what I was thinking." Shikamaru explained.

Asuma just nodded, "Well Team. We have secured the village elder's granddaughter and neutralized the bandit camp. I would say for your first C-rank mission, you performed phenomenally."

Sadly, only Ino was interested in the celebratory cheer. Chouji was refilling the chakra he spent fighting the bandits and Shikamaru was…well everyone knows how Shikamaru was.

* * *

OMAKE 8 (Continued from Omake 7)

Zabuza looked on at the catatonic Kakashi, checking for any reaction. But when he didn't get any he sighed, "So that's it, you kill one of his brats, and the copy ninja is reduced to this. How pathetic. I should jus-" He was interrupted when a vile chakra filled the whole area. The potency of the chakra even sent a chill down his spine. He looked around to find the of source of it, which wasn't so hard. The blond brat was literally emanating red chakra.

 _"A Jinchuuriki huh. Looking at how fast the beast is taking over, he probably has no control over it."_ He thought. In trying to eliminate the Fourth Mizukage, he had looked into Jinchuurikis a bit. So, he knew the weakness when it came to an untrained Jinchuuriki.

And just like he knew, Naruto rushed at him directly in blind rage. But Zabuza did not anticipate the speed at which Naruto came at him and because of his unpreparedness he was barely able to dodge Naruto's claw strike.

Naruto was already covered in cloak of red chakra which vaguely resembled a fox with two chakra tails. His nails had grown sharper along with his fangs, which were now protruding out of his mouth. His whisker marks had become thick and jagged as well.

He rushed at Zabuza again intending to end him. But this time Zabuza was prepared. He swung the blunt end of his sword and hit Naruto directly on his head, hard. In an instant Naruto went unconscious while all the red chakra dissipated.

"Hmph! As expected, a rampaging beast is all what you are unless you train to control the beast. Just that brute strength will not be enough against a seasoned Shinobi. But I will let you live. You will be a pretty useful tool for me." Zabuza said before turning to the last remaining people.

But he had to jump back quickly to avoid a spear of lighting. After Zabuza retreated, Kakashi cancelled his technique and he too retreated taking Naruto with him. When Naruto released Kyuubi's chakra, it had snapped Kakashi out enough to realize that the enemy was still there, and his other students were still in danger. He didn't hear what Zabuza had planned for Naruto, but he had to take him back anyhow. So, he decided chakra was not an issue here and should go full power on Zabuza.

As soon as he landed, Zabuza started making hand seals for a Jutsu strong enough to take everyone down in one go. To his surprise, Kakashi copied him at every step, but started to pick up speed. Zabuza couldn't state his surprise fast enough before Kakashi casted his Jutsu, "Water Style: Giant Vortex Jutsu."

Kakashi really had pulled all the stops here, as the scale of the Jutsu was so big that the spilled water threatened to uproot the surrounding trees taking Zabuza along with it.

Zabuza himself was shocked to see Kakashi finish the jutsu even before him. That shock made him be swept along with the water vortex, before he was slammed into a tree. Even though his body was quite battered, he tried to move out of the way. Unfortunately, a few precisely placed Kunais halted his moments.

Kakashi wasn't going to let him take even a single breadth, so he dug as deep as he could in his chakra reserves and managed to form one of his only original Jutsus. Lighting formed around his hands, screeching all the while. Kakashi ran at Zabuza at full speed intending to end him as soon as possible.

Sadly, all he was able to hit was the tree behind Zabuza. He looked at retreating figure of the one who took Zabuza, with the said swordsman slung on his back. He sighed and took his hands out of the tree. He looked back at the team and all the guilt came back on his shoulders like a ton of bricks.

Naruto was still unconscious, Sasuke was shook up staring at Sakura's severed body while Tazuna was off to side crouching and holding his head. He gave a heavy sigh. It was supposed to be a simple C-rank escort mission. He should have turned back when the Demon Brothers showed up. He knew they had to be working for someone, someone stronger. He was supposed to train this team, so he knew what their level was at. It was undeniable to him, he had failed the team.

He walked up to Sasuke, thankfully because of the rather short fight he still had chakra, even through his use of two lightning blades. He looked at Sasuke and said in a sombre tone, "Sasuke, Take Naruto. We are going to Tazuna's house." Sasuke and Tazuna looked disbelievingly at Kakashi, but both for different but also similar reasons. Sasuke, because he thought his sensei was just abandoning Sakura, and Tazuna, because he couldn't believe that even after all that had happened because of his lie, he was still helping.

Kakashi didn't say anything else though. He took out a scroll from his belt pouch and rolled it open besides Sakura. With a few handseals, both halves of Sakura's body puffed away, probably into the scroll. Kakashi shakily rolled the scroll close and said, "After we drop Tazuna to his house, we will give Sakura a proper burial, back in her village. Her body will be preserved in this."

Now that her body was out of the view, Sasuke got out of his stupor and nodded. He walked up to Naruto and hoisted him in a piggyback carry.

Seeing that he was ready, Kakashi nodded to Tazuna and started walking in the direction of wave. Tazuna quietly followed with his head down. Like Kakashi, he was also feeling guilty for what happened to Sakura. So, the rest of the journey was done in morbid silence.

 **(To be continued)**

* * *

AN:

Wooh. 10K words. Well 8.7 if you only count the main story. But still that is the longest chapter I've ever written. But well that's that. Team 10 was the first to complete their mission. Granted theirs was the easiest. And it feels like another story running with this continuing Omakes.

Now as I said, I would be editing the previous chapters to make them more readable. Every one of those chapter will have an update date in the beginning of the chapter and may be a changelog, if it's worth mentioning, which I don't think they will.

So, next time will be the Kunoichi led teams. Till then. Auf Wiedersehen!


	19. The Race is on!

For anyone who was wishing for it or otherwise, I'm back with another chapter.

Quick update: **Chapter 1 and 2 have been refreshed as of now.** I hope they are now a better read than they were before. Going through them after this long time helped me in finding the errors I had made. While sadly chapter 1 is still basically a clone of canon, I hope it is better written. As I said in the last chapter nothing exactly new is added to them except for stuff that would make it easier to read and understand, I hope. My new word processor has done wonders for error checking.

Though anyone who is already up to speed with the latest chapter needn't bother with them unless you want too.

Okay, time for some reviews,

 **bloody dragon fang, TheWateringWizard, GunBlade2019** and EvilCuttlefish: Thanks for the support and the reviews.

 **Darkjaden:** You are absolutely right. That is one of the reasons I put her and Naruto in different teams. Talking about fighting styles, don't you think it will be more interesting to show that in a free for all fight? Hint Hint.

 **Born2BeGodLike:** You see, I don't see pairings as entertainments. I don't get bored of pairings. I may be unsatisfied with one, but not bored. Maybe relationships don't work like that in real life like as they seem to do in most mangas. But I don't want to keep reality so close to the fictional world. I may have not been in a relationship, but definitely would not want to be in one if, in the end, everything ends just because it got boring. Though it's obviously up to you if you want to read this further or not. But I will never get bored of NaruHina, and if I ever post any other Naruto fic you can bet it will be NaruHina again.

 **True Hyper Sonic:** I really had no idea it was canon. Thanks for the information.

 **demigodninja21:** Hmm…It's a bit complicated than that. As a character, I think what Sasuke did is what any person would do if given the opportunity. But counting the story as a whole, it seems to heavily revolve unfairly around him, or specifically the Sharingan. So, it's not exactly Sasuke that I hate, it's the Uchiha. But since Sasuke was basically the only one left for the most part of the story, he gets the full brunt of it. Some other Uchihas like Itachi and even Madara did whatever they did for a grand scheme of things. Sasuke to me seemed to act childishly, so did Obito actually. Sakura, well she is just plain annoying. I also hate people with God complex. You will get to know about that in future. (If you hang around for that long that is.)

 **Guest:** I don't even know why you are back if you didn't like some part of the story. I commend you though for accepting the fact that you are a loser too.

Well, on with the chapter, but wait, **Naruto franchise doesn't belong to me.**

* * *

Chapter 19: The Race is on!

Even though the sun was just starting to peek over the horizon, a huge crowd already had gathered at the port, where the race to Todoroki shrine was about to start.

"Whoa! Look at all these people. I didn't know this event was such a big deal." Kiba exclaimed. Akamaru barked his agreement from his jacket.

"Well, it IS an event that decides the fate of the village for four years. So, I guess this crowd is normal. Some of them are probably from neighbouring towns though, since this town definitely doesn't have this many people." Naruto explained calmly even though he was similarly surprised.

"Well, what kind of race is this anyway? Just run from start to finish?" Kiba asked.

"Yeah, something like that," Sakura answered. She took out a map and showed it to him, "They start from here, from the Degarashi port to the Motoroki shrine. That's the midpoint." She explained.

"So, wait. They walk of water?" Kiba asked since there was no other way in the map to reach the shrine without crossing the waters.

"Uh, no Kiba, the first part of the race is done by boat. Then the runners pick up the Ryuko jewels from the Motoroki shrine and the first one to get them to the great Todoroki shrine wins. And that's about where the rules go. Other than that, anything goes, shortcuts, dirty tricks, anything." Sakura explained further.

"And that's why hiring shinobis as bodyguards are allowed as well, I guess. Anyway, Kiba, Sakura, Akamaru, be on a sharp lookout. We haven't been able to find the shinobis that the opposite side has hired. We have to be ready for them." Naruto added.

"I don't know how they got past your sensing. Shouldn't you be able to sense and tell the civilians apart from shinobis?" Kiba asked him.

Naruto shook his head, "I don't know. They are probably not in the town and are waiting on the road ahead for an ambush. Also, we don't know what level of shinobi they have hired. I don't want to underestimate them, but their chakra maybe too weak for me to be able to differentiate between them and the civilians." He got serious before adding, "On the other hand, while I don't want to overestimate them either, they might be skilled enough or have some sort of jutsu to hide themselves among the others. That's why, stay sharp."

All three of his teammates nodded.

Idate, who was going through some stretches, said, "I don't care what you guys do, but stay away from me. I have a race to run, don't get in my way."

While Kiba wanted to yell at the brat, he stopped himself and compensated by gritting his teeth. Akamaru had no such reservations and openly growled at him.

The speaker sounded before any argument could spew up, "Attention! Attention! The great Todoroki shrine race is about to begin. Running from the Wasabi side is, Idate Morino!" The announcer announced getting cheers from the Wasabi side, while Idate himself just stayed quiet.

"And running for the Wagarashi family, Fukusuke Hikyakuya!" The Announcer said again, this time getting cheers from the Wagarashi side.

"Runners! Take your marks." The runners did so while the gate to the port opened.

"GOOOOO!" The announcer yelled at which both the runners shot off.

"Okay, let's go...ooo? Where the heck is he going?" Kiba yelled.

Indeed, instead of running straight to the boats that were set up for the runners to reach the Motoroki shrine, Idate had changed course and was running along the port.

"Guess we have no choice but to follow him, let's go," Naruto said before he and his team followed Idate.

* * *

Kurenai was also surprised when she saw Idate run in the wrong direction from her hiding place and cursed. _"That brat better not put my team in unnecessary danger."_ She thought before sighing, "If Asuma was here, he would say I was acting like a mother hen." She chuckled to herself, before she too left after her team, but kept enough distance so that she could react to any ambush.

* * *

Idate had already run quite inland before Team 8 could catch up to him. Going through the forested area, Team 8 was tree leaping to reach Idate quicker.

"What does he think he is doing? He will never win the race if he continues going farther from the ocean." Kiba snarled.

"We can't do anything about it. We just have to follow him. Who knows, maybe he has a plan." Naruto stated before he suddenly stopped and looked in another direction. Seeing him stop made his teammates halt as well.

"Senpai, we don't have time to stop. He is getting away." Sakura told him.

"I sense three chakra signatures in that direction. Wait…two of them just vanished, probably Shunshined out. The last one is heading in Idate's direction." Naruto informed his team. He resumed jumping making his team follow and said, "Come on! We need to reach Idate before that guy."

"Wouldn't it be easier to take that guy out before he reaches him?" Kiba asked.

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, that idea came to me too. And since it doesn't look like he is that much strong, at least chakra wise, we should be able to take him out easily. But I want to avoid confrontation just in case his teammates are waiting ahead for Idate. So, it's better we stick with Idate then try and take on the other team."

Finding no arguments, Team 8 collectively increased their speed to reach Idate.

After a few more moments of trying catching up to Idate, which was difficult due to his speed, Akamaru suddenly started barking from inside Kiba's jacket.

"What did you say, partner?" Kiba asked his ninken. Akamaru gave a few more yips and barks, which while not understandable to the two non-Inuzuka members of the team, made complete sense to Kiba.

"What? A Genjutsu? On us?" Kiba asked. He sniffed the air to check if his partner was right, though he didn't have any reason to doubt him. But before he could conclude the matter himself, his teammates did it for him.

"Akamaru's right. We are in a Genjutsu. But it's not applied to us. It's an areawide Genjutsu. That is not easy to pull off." Sakura clarified.

Naruto nodded, "And that's why it was hard to sense since the chakra is not directly interacting with ours. But still, it can be easily dispelled." He made a ram hand seal, his teammates doing the same, "Release!"

Immediately the area around them changed from a normal tropical forest to a different one. Akamaru though still continued to converse with his partner.

"I'm guessing that he is saying that we are still in a Genjutsu?" Naruto asked his teammate.

The Inuzuka nodded, "Yeah. It seems we escaped one Genjutsu and fell into another one."

Naruto agreed, "That is exactly what it is. And I don't know if Idate has sensed it or not." He looked in the direction of the Wasabi runner and told his team, "I'll go on ahead and warn him of the second Genjutsu. You come after and keep an eye for any ambush."

Getting nodes from his team, he almost seemed to disappear even to his teammates' trained eyes.

* * *

Idate was still running when he encountered a peculiar looking tree. He stopped to inspect it a bit before concluding.

"I'm trapped in some sort of Genjutsu." He made the same ram hand seal and yelled: "Release!". Just like with Team 8, the scenery changed and Idate could see light peeking through the thick of the forest.

"Over there!" He exclaimed and ran towards the light. Just as he exited the previous scenery, he heard someone yell at him to stop but it was too late as he suddenly lost the feeling of the ground below him.

Shocked at finding himself devoid of any ground to stand on, he started to panic, but before he fell to his death a rope with a kunai at the tip wrapped around his waist and saved him from his imminent death. Because of, gravity and inertia, he was swung towards the cliff and slammed on it. The pain snapped him out of the second Genjutsu, where he finally realised he was nowhere near the forest he was supposed to go through.

"Phew! Made it just in time." Naruto said from the edge of the cliff holding the rope and by extension Idate before pulling the runner up.

By the time Idate was back up, they were joined by the rest of Team 8. Sadly, Idate didn't look the least bit thankful when he said, "Look, I didn't need your help okay."

That pissed off the team. Being the loudest of them, Kiba was the one to show their displeasure, "You didn't need it? Listen, you fathead, how about a little thanks for saving your life!"

Idate wasn't deterred, "You only did it because you are bound to by duty, you don't need for me to thank you!"

Kiba, as well as Akamaru, growled at him. Naruto, even though he didn't like Idate's attitude, told Kiba to let go, "Leave it Kiba. But look, if you don't want to wind up dead, you better stick close to us instead of running off on your own."

Sakura asked the question that was on their mind since the beginning of the race, "But anyways where are you going? What happened to port Degarashi?"

"What about it? Forget the port, I'm heading north from here." Idate answered.

His answer though obviously didn't explain much, so Sakura pressed on, "You are? Is it faster that way?"

Idate got a smug look, "That's right!"

Kiba sneered at him, "Yeah right! How do we even know we can trust him?"

"That's the problem with all you ninja." Idate spat, "Look at this time of the year, there are some pretty strong seasonal winds blowing hard across the sea. Back at the starting point, I noticed the clouds. I could see the wind was blowing towards us. On top of that, there is a port to the north where the ocean current flows into Nagi island. That's what I was saying you ought to use this a little more, right here." He explained while pointing at his head.

Seeing that none of the Team 8 members had any way to fault his plans, they just shrugged and followed close behind Idate.

* * *

After a few minutes of running, Kiba sniffed the air and said, "I can smell the salt in the air again. We are close to the ocean."

And sure enough a few moments later they came up to another port, albeit obviously smaller than the one in Degarashi. Looking at the sky, they could see that what Idate said was indeed true as dark clouds were surrounding a big chunk of land in the ocean. Which prompted Sakura to ask, "What's that out across the water?"

"It's the halfway point. Motoroki Shrine over on Nagi Island." Idate answered while looking around the place before continuing, "We can probably get ourselves there in an hour from here. One sec…" He ran to the side to the small house that was on the shore.

He knocked on the door and called, "Hey gramps. It's me, Idate of the Wasabi."

The door opened to an old man, who upon seeing Idate perked up, "Hey there, I've been waiting for you."

"It's going just as I thought it would. I'm gonna need you to lend me that boat." Idate said.

"You bet! I've got things all ready for you. You can use that one over there." The old man said pointing at a boat already in the water, "There isn't a faster boat around."

"Thanks a lot, gramps." Idate thanked him.

"It's not a problem. Jirocho has done a lot for me over the years. Just make sure you don't lose to those Wagarashi. I've had about all I can stand from them in the way they rule this land." The old man said.

"Don't worry about a thing. I may be the underdog, but you are looking at the right-hand man of the Wasabi. Trust me I won't fail you. I promise." Idate assured.

* * *

Kurenai was just done showing the Ame (Rain) Genin that you shouldn't mess with students of Genjutsu Mistress using Genjutsu. Though she did acknowledge his skill in being able to cast not only one Genjutsu over another but also do it area wide. Even then, Konoha was on neutral terms with Ame, and if this was a sanctioned mission from the village it would be prudent to not kill the ninja. Truthfully though Kurenai was just not someone who would kill young Genins like him for no reason. So, after showing him just how dangerous Genjutsu can be, which made her almost think against of tying the Genin up, she tied him anyway and was in the process of getting information on his teammates.

She wasn't surprised that it didn't take as long to get the information out of him. Not only was he a mere Genin, but she also was friends with one of the best Interrogators in the village, Anko Mitarashi, second only to the head of that department. She, fortunately, or otherwise, still hadn't got a chance to meet the head though. The only thing she knew is that the guy preferred mental torture over a physical one. She could see the merit there.

Sadly, she didn't have time to think over it much as it seemed this Genin was a part of a typical Genin squad. So not only were his teammates still out there, but there was also a Jounin leading them. Unfortunately, she made a mistake in following Idate instead of his opponent, since now she didn't have any means to follow after her team. Unless she walks on water the whole way to Nagi island, which while not impossible, would be taxing on her chakra. She really envied Naruto, by extension Namiko, for his reserves in chakra department.

Sighing and resigning to her fate she ran towards the place from where her team and Idate had left for the Nagi island, hoping there were some means for her to reach them before the Ame Jounin does.

* * *

Kurenai's team, unaware of their Sensei's plight, were already halfway to their first destination. They had to give it to Idate though since it was proved that he was right in his decision to sail from the North since due to the current as well as the wind, they were able to attain some real speed. Add the fact that it seemed they would reach Nagi Island without going through some heavy rains just made it even better.

And just like that, as if to jinx them, clouds started gathering around them, and immediately started pouring. Though it wasn't water that came down from the sky.

"It's oil," Sakura observed.

"Yeah, we kinda got that," Kiba said while pinching his nose. Akamaru tried to do that too with his paws. The pungent smell of oil was apparently annoying for their sensitive noses. His eyes widened when he came to a realization, "Shit! We're being ambushed!"

Before they could question why their ambusher was using oil, an aflame arrow hit their boat igniting the oil in it. The flames quickly spread, surrounding the whole boat and engulfing everything in it.

Another boat moved up the burning one. The two breather wearing occupants of the boat watched the other one burn with glee. Sadly, that rendered them unaware of their surroundings putting them at the tip of the rapidly spinning drill speeding towards them.

Kiba's aim fell true, but only for one of them, because as soon as the first one was hit with Tsuga, the second one got out of his trance and jumped back to the front of the boat.

Unfortunately for him though, he jumped straight into the waiting Naruto's kunai. Though instead of stabbing him right away, Naruto held his kunai at the Genin's neck, "That was the fastest boat you just burned. I hope you don't mind if we take yours as compensation." He said.

The Genin looked back just enough to see who was threatening him before looking at his teammate who took the full brunt of Inuzuka's attack and was now pinned to the floor under the Inuzuka. He was not surprised to see that their target was not with them. Knowing he was already outmatched, he sighed, "Sure you can have the boat." He said before making a hand sign, "IN PIECES!"

* * *

Sakura and Idate heard the huge explosion and stopped their swimming to look back at what caused it. Their eyes widened on seeing a smoke cloud originating from where they knew Naruto and Kiba were fighting their pursuers.

The sight of fire was already getting to Idate. When Naruto said that they were being followed and suggested he replace them with clones to act as decoys while they hid, Idate had opposed it. Even after being saved from falling to his death, he didn't want any help from shinobis. Sadly, he ran out of options when he saw another boat approaching them. Naruto's plan did work to some extent, the shadow clones proved to be good decoys. Unfortunately, he hadn't anticipated them to make it rain oil and burning their whole ship down.

Finding it was time to improvise, he offered to take the enemy boat by taking them down, while Idate swam ahead of them to a safe distance with Sakura being there to guard him just in case. Again, Idate refused to do so, accusing them of using him as a decoy to run away. But when faced with the fact that Sakura was coming with him and that his boat would be nothing but wreckage in a short time, his hand was forced.

Now though seeing not only his but also their enemies boat going up in fire along with possibly Naruto and Kiba, brought old memories back. That was not helped when Sakura said, "Idate, go on ahead. I'll see what happened to Senpai and Kiba."

Idate looked at her with unbelieving eyes, "Can't you tell what happened to them? They are dead. And it's again because of me."

Sakura though was not deterred. She looked at him with determined eyes, "They are not dead. You don't know him but senpai, Naruto, will never lose to those Genins. He is strong, strongest of all of us Genins. He will not die so easily and will not let his friends die either. So, I don't believe they are dead unless I see it with my own eyes. But right now, your task is to win this race. If you don't Senpai's sacrifice will go in vain." She said before swimming towards the smoke.

Idate watched her go with a shocked expression on his face because of the trust Sakura put in her teammates. Realizing there was also someone else who had put their trust on him, he continued to swim towards his destination.

* * *

Sakura knew that running on the water would have been faster. But following Naruto's advice, in order to keep a low profile, just in case the enemies were still there, she kept on swimming. Contrary to the determination she showed Idate, she was indeed worried for her teammates.

Getting close to the site, she was relieved to hear barking. Leaving stealth to the wind, since Akamaru's barking made it a moot point anyway, she shot out of the water and started running on it towards the sound. Running through the wreckage she could see Akamaru standing on something. As soon as he saw her, just like a normal dog, he wagged his tail and started yipping at her.

As she got closer to Akamaru, she realised that it was Kiba that Akamaru was standing on. He himself was draped over a piece of floating wood. As soon as she reached him, she checked for vital signs and was relieved to find some. He also looked relatively unharmed except for some splinters of wood here and there, which seemed more to be stuck on his jacket than his body.

"Akamaru, I'm glad you are alright. Don't worry Kiba is okay too. But where is Senpai." She asked the ninken. While she obviously could not converse with him as Kiba and other Inuzuka could, Akamaru was smart enough to answer her the way she would understand. He circled on Kiba's back before pointing his nose downwards towards the water.

"Underwater? Don't tell me…" Sakura said before jumping and turning around kunai at ready when the water behind her started spinning forming into a small vortex.

She waited for whatever was causing it when a guy in white jumpsuit surfaced and floated along the edge of the whirlpool. Her face lit up on seeing Naruto's blond head come up. But she frowned when instead of being alone he hoisted another similarly dressed guy with a breathing mask on another piece of wood before standing on the water himself.

"Senpai, while I think I know, I still have to ask who they are?" Sakura asked still frowning, already knowing the answer.

"Well, they are the ones who attacked us. One of them was already unconscious due to Kiba's attack. The other one who set off the explosive tag, not so much. Hah! Stupid guy thought he could overwhelm me with clones." Naruto answered.

Sakura got a tick mark on her forehead, "If you already know that, why are you saving them?"

"Don't worry they won't be able to do anything anymore." He said before taking out a brush and drawing something on their foreheads. "There, their chakra should be sealed now." He looked around before spotting a large piece of what previously was a boat and hoisted the two Ame Genin before depositing them on it. He unsealed some ropes and proceeded to tie them up. "They won't be any problem for us, or them, anymore." He said.

"Senpai, you still haven't answered, why save them?" Sakura asked again.

"Well, they were just doing their mission, right? There's no reason to just let them die like that." Naruto answered.

Sakura sighed. The guy was too kind sometimes. She decided to ask another question, "What happened here anyway?"

"Well, as planned, Kiba was able to take out at least one of them, and I stopped the other one. But they had already prepared for something like that happening I think, as they blew up the boat using an already planted explosive tag. I pushed Kiba off the boat using a wind jutsu before jumping away. It seems Kiba was standing right on the tag since he was flung even further. Akamaru was already in the water actually and probably pulled Kiba on that platform." Naruto explained. "Anyways we should hurry back to Idate. There may be more of these guys." He added. He walked up to Kiba before picking him up on his back. He nodded to Sakura and started running towards the shore, Sakura and Akamaru following him.

* * *

Kurenai had already abandoned the rowboat she had borrowed after seeing the smoke cloud and was now running on the water. She didn't need to be a sensor to know what or who was in that direction. Fearing that her Genin had already encountered the Ame Jounin, she stopped worrying about chakra and was speeding up to rendezvous with her team.

* * *

Naruto suddenly tensed and started running on the water faster. Surprised by his sudden increase in speed, Sakura nonetheless caught up and asked, "What's the matter, senpai?"

"There's another unknown chakra signature with Idate and this guy doesn't seem to be a Genin. He has more chakra than those three guys from earlier combined. We have to reach him fast." Naruto answered.

They were reaching up to the shores when they saw a man with a wooden umbrella standing over Idate. Naruto saw him about to stomp on Idate, so quickly threw a kunai at him. Instead of dodging the kunai though, the man just brought his umbrella in the way which deflected it. He jumped back nonetheless when a small white dog tried to pounce him.

"Hmm, a ninken. It seems in a fight between Leaf and Rain Genins, the Leaf Genins are stronger. But Genin no matter how strong they are, are no match against me, a Jounin." The Ame Jounin said before swinging his umbrella creating a strong gust of wind. Akamaru, being the lightest of all, was flung back and hit a rock. So was Sakura. Naruto was able to hold up, mainly because of this hold on the ground using chakra as well as the added weight of Kiba.

The Ame Jounin jumped back at a higher ground, "Fortunately for you, my work here is already done." He said before moving his gaze away when he heard the sound of the crowd cheering, "See, Fukusuke is already at the shrine and poor Idate only has a few moments to live. So, I'll spare you for now." He said before vanishing.

Naruto cursed. He set Kiba down and moved up to Idate to see what the Jounin meant. Though looking at the needles sticking out of him, he already had an idea. He saw Sakura get up and move to check on Akamaru.

He plucked out one of the needles from Idate and inspected the tip. Thanking his Nee-chan for teaching him and his sister about poisons, that was one of the fields were she was better than their mother, he took out one of the anti-dotes she had prepared that worked on most run-of-the-mill poisons, which this one thankfully seemed to be, and popped a pill in Idate's mouth and made sure he swallowed it.

Looking back, he saw Akamaru was already up and Sakura was checking on Kiba now. He plucked the rest of the needles out of Idate and picked him up. "Sakura, there's a cave up ahead. We should go there before treating these two. It is going to rain soon." He told her.

Sakura nodded and then showed her strength by hoisting Kiba on her similar to how Naruto had done to Idate. Giving him a nod, they moved to the cave.

* * *

When Kurenai had reached the place, which was littered with shipwreck, she half expected to see one of her Genins there. And even though she was relieved to see none of her Genins, she was indeed surprised to see two Ame Genins similarly dressed to the one she had caught. One of them was conscious and wriggling about on a big floating piece of wood, trying to get free from the ropes tying him up. She saw hope appearing in his eyes when he saw someone was there, but it soon turned into fear, probably when he saw her headband.

She had looked around to try and figure out what had happened, but figuring she could just ask her Genin, she gave an exaggerated shrug to the Ame Genin before continuing on her way to the Island.

She could already see land as well as something she had hoped to see. Or someone. Figuring that Naruto had already sensed her approach, she wasn't much surprised to find him already waiting for her at the shore even in the rain. But she was curious as of why he was there instead of being with his team and Idate. The only reasons she could come up with was either this was a Shadow Clone left behind to report to her, or something had happened to Idate or someone else. Wanting to get some answers, she ran up to him.

"Naruto, what the hell happened?" She asked as soon as she reached him.

"A lot of things actually. But I think we should move out of this rain before I report." Naruto suggested.

Kurenai sweatdropped. The way he said it, seemed more like he was answering a subordinate instead of the other way around. Still seeing he was right, she followed him.

* * *

"I see," Kurenai said after listening to her Genin's report. Kiba was also up, partly thanks to Sakura's treatment and partly because he was not much wounded anyway. Idate though was still out, thankfully it was not the poison keeping him down anymore.

"What do we do now, Sensei? That Wagarashi runner has a lot of head start and Idate is still unconscious. Moreover, there is that Jounin too." Sakura asked.

"Well, the Jounin isn't that much of a problem actually. Aoi Rokusho was an average Chunin at best when he was in the village. He may have improved a bit, but the main problem isn't him, especially since we know that he is alone now. The problem is indeed how to make Idate win the race." Kurenai stated.

"You know that Jounin, Kurenai-sensei?" Sakura asked her surprised by her Sensei's knowledge of the Jounin.

Kurenai nodded, "Yeah. He was a Chunin in our village and an instructor in the academy. He is charged for stealing an important scroll and the 'Sword of the Thunder God' from the village."

Naruto perked up at that, "He stole great-granduncle's sword?" He asked not knowing that bit of information. He knew there were many artefacts of his clan that were now locked up in village vaults. His mother seemed content with it seeing no reason for those artefacts to come out anymore.

The answer to Naruto's question though came from an unexpected source, "No, I stole that sword, along with the scroll of sealing." Idate's voice, as well as answer, surprised everyone, even Kurenai. Being a newly minted Jounin, she still wasn't privy to every titbit of such information.

Sakura's surprise changed into realisation, "I knew you got training from one of the hidden villages. You have too much speed to be a simply trained civilian."

Kurenai was surprised that she didn't recognise Idate at all. She had also taught in the academy at one point and only now realised who Idate was. "Idate Morino. Yes, I remember you from the academy. You are the brother of the head of Leaf's T&I department, Ibiki Morino."

Idate went wide-eyed from that news, "You knew my brother?" He asked her.

Kurenai shook her head, "Well, I won't say I know him. I have only heard of him from my friend who is his second-in-command."

Idate noted the present tense in her sentence, which prompted him to ask, "'is'? You mean he is still alive?" He asked perplexed.

Kurenai frowned, "Well, I may have not met him, but he is definitely still alive. What make's you think he is dead?"

Idate's surprised eyes change to those of sadness before he looked down. Deciding to press that matter for later, Kurenai asked a different question, "What did you mean when you said it was you who stole the sword and scroll?"

Idate, still sad as well as happy to hear that his brother was alive, looked up again before saying, "It hit me hard when I failed my first Chunin exams when Aoi approached me saying there was another way to become a Chunin."

Hearing that, Naruto had already formed the rest of the story in his head, "He told you to steal those two things and bring them to him as proof of your skills. But when you went there, he told you about his plan to turn traitor and seeing no choice you had to run as well. Right?"

Everyone except for Kurenai turned their surprised eye on him. Kurenai was already aware of the debacle between Sasuke and Mizuki, as well as the Senju twins' role on dissuading it. When Idate gave an unconscious nod to Naruto's theory, she couldn't ignore the uncanny similarity between the events. Deciding to put the matter in front of the Hokage when they went back, she turned to Idate when he continued.

"I don't know how you figured out that much. But yeah, that's almost exactly how it went. He told me I could be a Chunin in the Village Hidden in Rain by using the sword and the scroll as gifts, where he would become a Jounin." Idate explained further clutching something in his hands tightly.

Noticing Idate's gesture Sakura asked, "What is that your holding? You have been clutching that all this time."

He opened his hands to show a pocket knife with intricate design on it. He gritted his teeth and said, "All that time and training, all for nothing. Nothing I do goes right. I have never been of any use to anyone. But even so, Boss Jirocho still trusted me, put his faith in me." He clutched the knife harder, "And now look what I've done. Because of me, the Wagarashi will win again." He said in self-loathing.

Everyone in the room became silent for a while. They didn't know what to say, before Naruto spoke, "Well, I don't know anything about being useful to anyone. But you still haven't lost the race." Everyone turned their eyes on him again.

"But Naruto, the other runner has a huge lead now. Even if Idate is faster, catching up to him is almost impossible." Kurenai said. Even though she didn't want to upset Idate any more, she couldn't hide the truth.

"Not if the other guy is taking the rabbit's way of running the race," Naruto said while looking at a portion of the cave wall. Probably in the direction where the other runner was at the moment, Kurenai guessed. He looked back at his team and added, "Also it's impossible if all we do is run after him." Naruto said with a smirk. Kurenai raised an eyebrow. She knew Naruto and Namiko had a penchant of pranking, but that had not shown itself during any of their missions till now. Granted they were mere D-rank chores.

"Unlike us who have been guarding Idate, they used their resources to hinder him. Obviously, they were successful. But I think now is the time we turn the tables on them." Naruto explained further.

Kurenai frowned though, "You mean, we block Fukusuke from advancing? Even if we want to do that, we would still need to get ahead of him." She argued.

Naruto nodded, "That's true. But only Idate needs to go through Motoroki Shrine to get the jewels. We are not hindered like that and can move into position faster. And since we know that Aoi is the only one remaining, we can split up the jobs." He elaborated. He looked at Idate and asked, "What about you, Idate? Can you run? Or should I ask, will you run?"

"But the other runner has already reached Motoroki!" Idate replied.

"So, you are going to give up then? If you are, you have no right to take about being useful to anyone. No one wants to put their trust on a person who gives up so easily. Idate, if you give up now, you would be repeating your mistake all over again." Naruto said.

While they were just words, Idate felt them like a slap to his face. It was true, he realised. If he gave up now, he would be betraying Jirocho this time. But unlike before, this time he had a chance to redeem himself with these ninjas before him. He had to move forward.

His decision made, he tried to stand up but ended up falling back. He cursed at himself again, as it seemed even if he had decided to not give up, his body wanted otherwise. But he was surprised when he felt himself being lifted up. He saw Naruto below him, who looked at him and said, "The poison still hasn't left your body completely. Till then I will carry you. I don't think there is a rule against it."

Kurenai sighed on having the decision taken away from her hands. But wanting her team's first mission not to end in a disaster relented to Naruto's idea anyway. "Naruto, you will guard Idate during the rest of the race. We will take care of slowing the other runner down. Be careful though, Aoi may still be around."

Naruto nodded and sped out of the cave.

Kurenai sighed again, _'It's hard to tell sometimes which one of us is the leader.'_ She thought.

She looked at Sakura when she said, "Sensei, I think we should move out too."

Kurenai stared at her for a few moments before sighing again, _'Definitely hard to tell.'_ She thought. "We have to work on our team dynamics, but yeah let's go." She said before walking out of the cave.

Sakura and Kiba looked at each other before shrugging and following her.

* * *

Even while carrying Idate, Naruto was fast enough to have already reached the stairs to the Motoroki Shrine. But even after having experienced the harsh training his mother and uncle had made him and his sisters go through, the number of steps intimidated him.

"We have to go all the way up there? That's pretty high. How many steps are there anyway?" Naruto asked.

"I'm not really sure. But that's why they call this the Spirit-Breaker." Idate answered, "But Naruto I think you should put me down now. I'm not exactly sure that riding like these is allowed or not. I don't want to be disqualified. Also, I think I can run on my own now."

"You sure?" Naruto asked which prompted Idate to nod.

As soon as Idate was let down, he wobbled a little before steadying himself. He gave a nod to Naruto and started climbing the stairs, Naruto following him.

They were already halfway up when Kiba and Sakura reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Naruto-senpai…really…has a…lot of energy, huh?" Sakura half-asked, half-stated while panting heavily. After getting out of the cave their Sensei had ordered them to provide backup to Naruto since there was more chance of Aoi waiting for them. Additionally, hindering Fukusuke was not a three-man job anyway.

"Hah! Not…as much as…me, right Akamaru?" Kiba tried to boast but obviously fell short because of own his panting as well as because of the obviously non-agreeing whine that his partner gave earning a laboured giggle from Sakura.

* * *

The crowd that was still at the Motoroki shrine cheered when they saw Idate appear. Idate though didn't pay them any mind and proceeded to the lone Ryuko Jewel that was left. Quickly placing it in his bag he turned and ran in the direction of Todoroki Shrine. All the while Naruto was still taking a breather on the ground. This was a workout even for him. But seeing Idate already far ahead of him, he sighed before getting up and following.

* * *

Fukusuke, the runner from Wagarashi, was at the bridge connecting the Nagi island to the Ouzu Island. Assured that victory was already his, he had used some of the time back at the Motoroki Shrine to get comfortable, though he told the others he was waiting for the rain to let up a little. His reasoning came to bite him back when the rain did let up and he was forced by Aoi to resume his race. So, having run from the shrine to this point, he was taking another breather when he was startled by Aoi.

"I suggest you get moving. Idate has made it to the Motoroki shrine already and is making his way here." Aoi told him.

"What!? Didn't you say you took care of him?" Fukusuke asked.

"I thought I had, but now is not the time to discuss it. Hurry up and cross the bridge." Aoi said getting fed up of Fukusuke's attitude.

"Huh! Some ninja, you're worthless." Fukusuke spat turning away from Aoi to resume the race.

He was halted by a hand on his shoulder, which forcefully turned him around before he was lifted off the ground by a hand to his throat.

"Listen here, I'm here because I have to, It's my duty. But one more little crack like that, I'll break you in half." Aoi threatened his own client.

Fukusuke apologised the best he could while getting his throat crushed making Aoi let him go. He quickly got to his feet and ran across the bridge.

Aoi went to follow him before his view started getting blurry. He saw Fukusuke fall on his face on the bridge just short of crossing it. That made him realise what was happening. He quickly brought his hands in a seal and released some chakra breaking the Genjutsu taking hold of him. It was fortunate that he did it on time as he had to immediately jump away to dodge the shurikens aimed at him.

"So, you have improved slightly after turning traitor then." Kurenai's voice said. To Aoi though it seemed like it was coming from all around him. But he answered anyway.

"Still relying on your weak little illusions I see, Kurenai."

"It's funny when you say that since your own students used these same weak illusions." She replied.

Aoi smirked, "Those brats? They aren't my students. Their weak ass of a Jounin sensei got himself killed in his last mission, so I had to babysit them on this one. And given how those brats were taken out by your Genins just proves my point." He reached for his back pocket and took something out that looked like a vajra. Channelling some chakra into it caused a blade of lightning to form on the top of it. The chakra also effectively broke Aoi from the second Genjutsu he was in, making him realise he was not facing the bridge anymore. Though there was still no sight of Kurenai. Acting quickly, he took out a senbon needle and shot at Fukusuke.

The needle hit Fukusuke in his butt. The pain of which caused him to break out of the Genjutsu with a start.

"Don't just sit there. Get on with it!" Aoi yelled at him making Fukusuke scramble up and start running again, but not before taking the needle out.

Aoi looked back trying to sense Kurenai out. When he couldn't he resorted to taunting, "I didn't think Konoha ninjas had it in them to directly attack an uninvolved civilian like that. Something must have changed back in the village. Tell me, did the Hokage finally grow a spine?"

Sadly, that taunting didn't earn the response he wanted. He went to press on but stopped when he heard what sounded like footsteps on something wooden going away from him. Looking back at the bridge though he didn't see anyone. Realising what that sound was, he gritted his teeth and swung his sword to cut the ropes holding the bridge suspended.

He managed to cut one side before he had to stop and jump unless he got skewered by Kiba who yelled, "Like we will let you!" and used the Tsuga on him.

Aoi though may not exactly be Jounin level but proved his worth as a Chunin when without missing a beat he fired kunais at the ropes successfully cutting them disconnecting the bridge from that side.

Naruto who was following behind Idate felt the bridge give away. He let go of the Genjutsu that was masking them, making both him and Idate shimmer into existence, before grabbing Idate by his waist, "Hold on!" He yelled and jumped as hard as he could towards the cliff. It proved enough when he saw it approaching and readied himself to stick to it with chakra. After successful gripping the cliff wall, still holding Idate tightly he ran up the wall before front flipping both of them to the edge and on flat ground.

"Hah! That was a rush. Now get going Idate, we will take on that creep." Naruto stated.

Idate nodded before resuming his race. Naruto got up and saw Kiba fighting against Aoi in a kunai vs Lightening sword fight. Looking at the destroyed bridge below him he groaned, _'I'm going to kill the old man for putting me and Miko in different teams. I could have used the Chakra Chains to get to that side.'_

Looking at the fight, it was obvious that Aoi was at least strong enough to overwhelm a Genin. The light-sabre-like sword only made it harder. But he saw Aoi block one of Kiba's kunai strike before turning around and swinging at something behind him. Almost immediately his eyes went wide and quickly turned back to Kiba again.

Naruto realised that his Sensei had put him in a Genjutsu at that moment, but he had somehow broken free from it almost in an instant. Recalling from earlier on how he was not able to do anything like that before taking the Sword of Thunder God out, Naruto concluded that the sword probably had something to do with Aoi's ability to dispel his Sensei's Genjutsu so easily.

* * *

Aoi was getting fed up of not only fighting the Genin but also of the myriad of Genjutsus trying to take hold on him every now and then. It was only thanks to the side effect of the sword disrupting his chakra whenever he used it that none of those Genjutsus was affecting him as much.

Not wanting to push the fight any further since the sword was a chakra glutton, he went for a killing strike on Kiba. But a rope tied to a kunai quickly wound around the hand holding the sword before he heard the other Genin shout from the other side.

"Take that sword now, Sakura!"

Almost laughing at the naivety of the Genin on shouting his plan out in open, he went to block whatever this Sakura was about to do with his umbrella. But before he could, it was knocked aside by a kick to his hand by Kiba. That was followed by kunais to his other arm. Kunais that were apparently aimed specifically to make his arm go slack along with his wrist, making him let go of his sword.

Naruto yanked the rope he was holding, pulling Aoi with it. This caused Aoi to turn around giving Kiba time to perform one more Tsuga on his enemy. This time Aoi couldn't dodge and took the full brunt of the spinning drill on his back. Sadly, Kiba's attack didn't pack as much power as it would if done in conjunction with his partner to complete put Aoi down. Even then Aoi was already on his last leg which was pulled from under him when his eyes closed, and he dropped to the ground with a thud.

Kurenai landed on the ground, "Weak illusions, are they? I bet you say that only because you don't have any resistance against them." She spat. She didn't like when people insulted Genjutsu like that or thought that she was weak because she used them primarily.

Kiba, Sakura and even Akamaru sweatdropped when they heard her. They knew what their Sensei was thinking. They also knew considering their Sensei weak because of her fighting style was also a very bad idea.

"Naruto go on ahead. We will catch up. It wouldn't look good if our client reaches the finish line without any of his hired bodyguards." Kurenai yelled from her side. Naruto nodded before running towards the Todoroki shrine.

Meanwhile, Kiba had picked up the vajra-like hilt of the Sword of the Thunder God. He looked it over before shrugging and channelling chakra to it. He only had a few moments to marvel at the lightning which took the shape of a sword before his eyes rolled up in his head and he fell back, letting the sword go.

Akamaru ran over to his partner in concern and started whining when he didn't get any response from him. Sakura was already upon him running her green medic chakra coated hand over him.

Kurenai sighed, "You shouldn't use something like that so brazenly."

"It looks like chakra exhaustion. Does it mean that the sword consumes that much chakra? Even if Aoi was a Jounin, looking at the speed at which it drained Kiba's chakra, even he shouldn't have been able to hold it for so long." Sakura said.

"He was constantly turning it on and back off. Also, Kiba was probably already drained a lot. The sword just consumed what was left. Or it may be because Kiba may not have any affinity towards the lighting element. We won't know for sure. Seeing that the sword belonged to the Second Hokage, I think Tsunade-sama or the Third Hokage will be able to tell us more. Anyways, patch Kiba up. We will have to wait till he is at least able to walk. I hope I don't have to tell you not to try what Kiba did?" Kurenai told her student who nodded fervently.

* * *

Fukusuke was already celebrating his victory in his head. So were the audience from the Wagarashi side when they saw him so close to the finish line. His internal celebration was broken though when the other side of the crowd also started to cheer. He looked back and saw Idate closing in on him. The surprise almost made him stop before he caught himself and started running faster.

Idate could see Fukusuke as well as the finish line. Not willing to let his Boss down, he increased his speed even more.

The crowd cheered more after witnessing both runners running neck to neck. Having witnessed almost a completely one-sided race till now, the excitement of actually having a fierce race like this was overwhelming. The Wagarashi who had already assumed their victory were now nervous because of how Idate was not only catching up but seemed to be overtaking their runner. The Wasabi who had already given up hope when they didn't get any news of Idate were now ecstatic to see Idate ahead of Fukusuke.

Naruto landed on the top of the last tori gate which was supposed to act as a finish line to the race just as Idate shot past Fukusuke and touched the finish line ribbon first. He saw Fukusuke stop and hunch over taking deep breaths. Idate didn't stop at the finish line though. He ran directly into the shrine. Probably to place the Ryuko Jewel he had in its place, Naruto guessed.

* * *

Kiba having finally woken up thanks to Sakura's treatment was now with his team attending the award ceremony held for the winner of the race, though he still needed Naruto's support to keep standing.

Idate was standing on a slightly high platform while the announcer announced, "The winner to this year's race is Idate Morino of the Wasabi family." The gathered audience cheered loudly for the winner.

Their cheers were brought to halt when the leader of the Wagarashi family, Kyuroku, came forward and said, "Hold on. That's enough." When the crowd became silent, he continued, "It seems this kid rode on the back of a hired ninja for part of the way. That's a violation." He finished with a smirk.

"What!?" Jirocho asked not believing him.

"I have proof." Kyuroku countered. He took out a photo and showed it to him, "Just look at this photograph." Indeed, it was a photograph of Naruto carrying Idate.

"They have to make it here by their own strength." The prime minister said while coming forward, "Those are the rules of this race. The boy must be disqualified. Which means that Fukusuke Hikyakuya of the Wagarashi family is the winner."

"But…Wait a mi…" Idate tried to explain. But the minister cut him off, "I will hear none of your excuses. Jirocho you gave your word. I want the Wasabi family to disband immediately." He ordered with a smirk.

His smirk was wiped out of his face when the Daimyo himself came forward, "Wait a moment. There is no such rule. Stop talking nonsense."

"But… my lord." The Minister tried to argue but was shot down when the Daimyo said, "But what? Are you suggesting I simply let the Wagarashi win simply because you wish it? Or perhaps the reason you want to win so badly is because it will put an end to all the bribes you have been accepting." He brought out a photograph of his own showing the Minister accept money from Kyuroku. The Minister's face went white as a sheet on seeing the picture. So did Kyuroku's.

"You ignoramus. You will give up your position and don a monk's robe." The Daimyo ordered.

The Minister could only give a weak yes for a reply.

"And you Kyuroku," The Daimyo continued, "I've heard a great about the evil deeds you have committed. Your crimes against the people of port Degarashi are unforgivable. From this day forth, the Wagarashi family is no more. Is that clear?"

Kyuroku just looked down and relented.

Everything taken care of, the Daimyo gave a laugh, "An auspicious today is. So now let us consider this matter ended." He announced making the crowd break into another round of cheers.

* * *

The next day

Kurenai was pleased. Scratch that, she was ecstatic. Her team not only completed a C-rank turned B-rank mission, but they were also able to re-acquire a stolen village artefact and capture a missing-nin. Speaking of Aoi, since he had joined another village, he would be more useful alive than dead. So, he was tied up with a chakra inhibiting seal applied on him. She and her team were waiting at the port for a pickup that they had requested to transfer him, as well as Kiba who would need a few days rest to recover the lost chakra.

On the note on losing Chakra, Kiba was glaring daggers at Naruto at seeing him swing around the Sword that had drained him completely of chakra like it was a normal sword, with no apparent chakra drain.

"How are you doing that? I could only hold it for a second before it sucked me dry." Kiba complained.

"I think it's because it is only supposed to be wielded by a Senju. Though since Aoi could also wield it somehow, I guess it is supposed to be used by a lightning user." Naruto answered. Turning the sword of, he continued, "That way the amount chakra required to be converted into lightning by the sword will be less. It also may be a result of chakra control. I'm able to use it mainly because I have a lot more chakra than it can drain."

Kiba still groaned. Since if that was the case, it would mean Naruto had almost infinite chakra.

Kurenai paid half mind to Naruto's explanation, but it did explain why Kiba was brought to the point of chakra exhaustion. Since while not a chakra monster like the Senju by any means, Kiba was no slouch. But since she still hadn't checked the chakra affinities of her Genins, it may be that Kiba didn't have the lightning affinity. Add the fact that in her team, his chakra control was the worst may have allowed the sword to take as much chakra as it could bringing Kiba to that state.

Their attention was taken by a ship marked with Konoha symbol docking at the port. The whole team was surprised when the person that disembarked from the ship introduced himself as Ibiki Morino.

Idate, who was there to see Team 8 off, was surprised to see his brother. He already knew from their sensei that his brother was alive. But it was a completely different feeling to actually witness it.

Ibiki though did not pay him any mind, "Where is the prisoner?" He asked. Kurenai just pointed at the prone figure of Aoi. Needing no further prompting, Ibiki's aid came forward to take him in. Though the aid's appearance itself surprised everyone again.

"Anko!" "Anko-sensei!" both the Sensei as well as Genins of Team 8 exclaimed in surprise.

"What not happy to see me, Kure-chan?" Anko answered with a smirk.

"N..no…that's not it. But what are you doing here? What about your team?" Kurenai asked after composing herself.

"It's a long story. Why don't you ask my team while I take a crack at my new toy?" Anko said licking her lips which if you asked her, she would deny vehemently about it looking similar to a particular snake man.

As if on cue an almost silent 'Naruto-kun' caused the person called to look at the one who said it, "Hinata-chan!?"

"You know Naruto-sama, we are here too." An amused Haku added from besides Hinata.

While the Genins of Team 8 went ahead on the ship to meet up with their fellow Genins, the Jounin Senseis of the team decided on what to do with Aoi.

Meanwhile Ibiki, already having his job done, was in the process of returning to the ship when Idate called out, "Big Brother! Hold on."

Ibiki didn't look back when he said, "Who are you? Only one person called me that. And he died three years ago." He finished while turning to face Idate.

Nothing more was said between them. Everyone had already left whatever they were doing to see what would happen. To their disappointment, Ibiki turned around and climbed into the ship again. Idate too just smiled.

 _"Big brother I figured out the answer to the tenth question of the Chunin exams."_ He thought.

Once everyone was on board, they bid their farewell to the people who had come to see them off.

* * *

On the way back home, Team 8 and Team 11 were exchanging stories of their missions. Team 8 was already done explaining theirs, so it was now Team 11's turn to do so.

Haku was the one who started, "Well, it started out just like yours actually with a simple mission, but then…"

* * *

AN:

That was longer than I thought it would be. But yeah, another team's mission done. And another is on the way. You probably know which ones next.

I obviously watched the anime for this arc and realised something. This may be the only mission in which Naruto didn't have to rely on Kyuubi at all. Not that there was much fighting involved anyway. But still, that is a plus.

Anyway, I hoped you liked this chapter. Stay tuned to for the next one. Good day to you or night depending on whenever you are reading this. Till next time.


	20. Human-fish? Or Fishy-humans?

It has been, exactly 3 months and 8 days. I really didn't plan this big of a gap between these two chapters, but circumstances (with some hint laziness) caused this anyway. And I deeply apologize for that. I did have my semester exams, after which I upgraded my laptop, which then caused my laptop to malfunction and die. I thought I would have to write this chapter all over again since I had already finished half of it by then. But somehow, I was able to revive it by myself without any data loss. But I could have finished this chapter in July itself, after which I would have to take the break. So I'm really sorry.

I would not be answering reviews here. Everyone who reviewed after chapter 19th will probably get their answer by the time this chapter is online unless you are a guest.

 **Naruto franchise does not belong to me.**

* * *

Chapter 20: Human-fish? Or Fishy-humans?

Land of Sea

After searching for Haku some more and not finding any sign of him, the rest of the Team 11 had to return as a thick mist was starting to form that would have made searching even more difficult.

A short and restless sleep later, the team was again looking for their lost member, this time with an awake Hinata, but to no avail. After regaining consciousness, Hinata had apologized profusely to her team, blaming herself for losing Haku. Her sensei though was having none of it.

"It was an ambush Hinata. An ambush we ALL got caught in. If anyone was at fault, it should be me for taking you to a place where there was confirmed danger at that time of the night. I've told you many times, don't be so hard on yourself." She had scolded. Hinata, haven't still completely forgiven herself, nodded anyway and aided her team in finding their teammate.

Finally, they decided it was better to have more eyes looking for Haku and went to the captain of the fleet they were supposed to guard. It also made sense to inform him of the exact situation.

"I understand your situation. Your colleague is missing and I'm sure you are all worried about him." Hitode said.

"Yes, did you get any information on where he might be?" Anko asked him.

"Unfortunately, I have yet to hear any such report from any shipwreck survivor." He answered solemnly, "Unfortunately we cannot delay our departure any more than today afternoon. I hope, you can understand that our relationship with Land of Water lies in jeopardy if we do so."

Anko nodded, "I understand. We will try to find our teammate till then. We will meet your ship this afternoon for guard duty with or without him. And one more thing, while our excursion yesterday to look for this Demon of the Ocean you told us about can be called a failure, we are almost hundred per cent sure that it does not have anything to do with a demon of any kind. What we are dealing with is definitely Shinobi. Or at-least something Shinobi related. It might very well be a summoning animal of some kind, but whoever let it loose has to be a Shinobi."

Hitode contemplated on what he was told, "That would explain why mostly the ships carrying valuables were targeted. But it doesn't explain the disappearances that have happened throughout the village."

Anko shook her head, "Rogue shinobis don't always do this kind of stuff for money. Many times, they are hired by someone to do their dirty work. That work may even include human trafficking or slave trading. We won't know for sure until we catch one of them. But we will do our best to solve the problem during our stay here. If we can't, I'm sure Hokage-sama can lend another team of specialists to do so."

"We would be forever grateful," Hitode said bowing his head.

* * *

Haku was not prepared to see a roof over when he opened his eyes. Though, if he was being true to himself, he was not expecting to open his eyes at all. This was a far better alternative to that.

He sat up, causing a wet cloth to fall from his head on his lap. His memory was hazy, he was trying to recall what happened to him to land him in his position. He looked around the small space he was in. It certainly didn't look like the Inn his team was supposed to stay in for the night.

That's when his memories started to flow in like water from an open flood gate. He remembered being dragged underwater while losing his chakra. Then everything blacked out. The next thing he remembered was seeing a black pupil before losing consciousness again.

His recalling halted when he heard the door to wherever he was slid open. He was shocked to see the same eye, two of them this time, he just recalled. Taking his eyes off them, he realized he was looking at the bandaged girl that he and his team saved earlier.

"I see you're awake." The girl asked him. The emotionless tone she used reminded him of his younger self. He recalled that this girl was apparently 'spirited away' as the villagers called it. That was probably the reason -or at least one reason- she spoke that way, he guessed.

"Uh, yeah. You are the one we met yesterday. You must be the one who saved me. Thank you very much." He expressed his gratitude genuinely.

The girl looked down meekly, on being recognised or being thanked like that, he didn't know. "It was just a coincidence." She replied in a small voice.

"Well co-incidence or not, it is the truth. I owe you one, I guess. I am Haku by the way. Can I at least get the name of my saviour?" Haku asked, instantly regretting afterwards. Jiraiya's influence got slightly out of hand over there. That line came out a lot cheesier than he wanted to.

The girl though didn't give any outward reaction to it. "Isaribi." She simply answered.

Somehow, not getting any kind of reaction out of her unsettled Haku. He didn't consider himself a flirt or anything but Jiraiya had certainly rubbed off on him. It always bugged Jiraiya that while he couldn't land a lady with his skills, Haku almost seemed to not even need much of those skills to do so. Jiraiya would later realize, thanks to an aloof Uchiha, that women, young girls especially, were more interested in guys that were actually NOT interested in them.

But back to the matter at hand, Haku was now dressed in his usual garb and sitting in front of Isaribi, who was pouring some food she had made in a bowl for him.

"So," Isaribi started with her usual tone, "What were you doing in such a remote area?" She asked while handing him the bowl.

Haku had to stop himself before he answered the question truthfully. Yesterday her team had concluded that this girl probably had to have some relation to this Demon of the Ocean. While a single girl coming back may have been a case of sheer happenstance, or luck, the fact that she may have had any contact with this demon was of great importance.

"I and my team are actually on a mission from our village," Haku answered without giving much out. He decided subtility was the key here. Interrogation was just one of the things their sensei specialized in and had started to teach some of it to them.

"What kind of mission?" Isaribi pressed on. While her tone did not change much from before Haku could tell she wanted to get something out of him as well. He smiled internally. It seemed they both were trying to make the other spill the beans.

"Nothing much. Just to guard a shipment." Haku answered trying to not sound too guarded at the same time trying to make her drop her guard.

Isaribi herself had to make an effort to not click her tongue. She knew that the town didn't have enough funds to hire a team of shinobi to guard mere fishermen. They had to be here to guard the shipment that was planned for Water country. Deciding to try and maybe scare the genin in front of her off, "It would be best for you to give up. There is a demon lurking in the ocean. You'll never survive an encounter with it."

Haku almost smirked at that. Taking up a contemplating look on his face, "Oh yeah! I heard about it from the town folks. But don't worry about that. I and my team will be able to take care of this demon." He assured before continuing, "Speaking of the demon, you wouldn't have any information about it, would you? It will really help us a lot if we knew what we are up against." He sprung the trap.

Of course, taking last night's encounter into account, it was clear to Haku that whatever this Demon of the Ocean was, was manmade. If that was the case, then all the cases of people being 'spirited away' were cases of kidnapping. And Isaribi's return meant that either she somehow managed to give her kidnappers the slip, which was unlikely as they would have made sure to silence her by now, or, and Haku hoped it was not the case, that Isaribi was in some form working with them.

Sadly, Isaribi shook her head and stood, "It seems you are feeling better now. In that case, when you're finished with your food, please leave." She told him before stepping out of the house.

With her back turned to him, Haku didn't try and hide his frown. It was understandable that this demon was a sore spot for her, but to him, it looked like she put her guard up to hundred per cent as soon as he tried to pry even a little bit into it. He quickly finished his food and hurried back after her.

"Wait! Isaribi-san…" He stopped abruptly on seeing the shack that was apparently her home. Splotches of paint littered the walls, glasses on the windows broken. Words like 'Monster', 'Demon' and the likes were written all over the place.

For Haku, it was a remainder. A sign of how his life would have been if he somehow survived the onslaught of the villagers and continued living in his home country.

During his travels with Jiraiya, he had at one point asked to go back to his home, just to see if there was anything left there and to at least give his mother a proper burial. Once there, he saw there wasn't anything much left to signify that an almost one-sided massacre took place there. The ice that Haku had subconsciously made to save himself had melted long ago. The dead bodies were probably taken away either by Kirigakure shinobi or the relatives of ones who died there, save for a single bony carcass that probably belonged to his father, but he did not dwell on him that much. The only thing that signified that the other villagers visited the place was the state his old home was in. Broken down almost to bits with only one remaining wall littered with words not that different from the ones that adorned Isaribi's house.

Sadly, his mother's remains were nowhere to be found. He could take a few guesses on what may have happened to her, but he didn't want to think too deeply on any of them. And seeing that making a memorial for her in that place would just give the villagers another thing to vandalize, he decided to just keep her in his heart for the time being.

Back in the present, he could see Isaribi was saying something to him. Apologizing for spacing out, he politely asked to repeat what she had said.

"I said don't worry about those. You should go back to your team." She suggested before walking off.

Haku too turned and started to walk towards the port, but stopped again when heard someone yell, "Look! There's the monster."

He knew that in no case the monster would just show up in broad daylight like that, but the fact that it came from the direction that Isaribi went in, made him want to check on it anyway.

What he came upon though was not what he expected. Children, no older than 7 years of age, were yelling those words at Isaribi. He saw a kid take a rock and threw it at her. It was not a throw from a ninja. So even if Isaribi was not one, she should have been easily able to dodge such a bad throw.

That was not what she did, however. Haku watched, shocked, as the rock hit her on her arm that shielded her face, which was the only action showing her reluctance at being pelted. When he saw another boy pick up another rock, his body moved on its own and before he knew it, he was holding the rock and standing in front of her.

"Knock it off! I'm not going to let you take your pranks too far." He claimed.

"Yeah? And who are you? A friend of the monster?" One of the kids asked.

"A monster?" Haku asked back.

"Yeah. Everyone knows that Isaribi secretly went off and joined up with the Demon of the Ocean." Another one of the kids elaborated.

While anyone else would have chalked anything they said as childish drabbles, it did give some credence of what he had concluded earlier. Still, wanting to give Isaribi the benefit of doubt, he said, "You shouldn't make up things like that."

A kid, that looked the youngest of them all, seemed to think he could sneak up on a ninja and went for a kick to Haku's shin. Wanting to show them that little kids shouldn't mess with someone they themselves thought was a Monster or Friend of the Monster, he casually lifted his foot, making the small boy miss, lose his balance and fall to the ground.

He looked down at the boy with an evil smile, "Kids shouldn't mess with monsters like us."

The little boy scrambled to his legs and ran after his already fleeing comrades, yelling about how the monster and its friend was going to eat him.

"You didn't need to do that. You should just leave me alone. Lest you get ended being labelled as a friend of the monster." Isaribi told him after getting up from the ground.

"Don't worry about me. I've been called worse. But if those kids keep doing it I ca-" Haku tried to say but was cut-off by Isaribi who yelled at him, "DON'T YOU GET IT! IT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!"

Haku was taken back by her outburst, which gave Isaribi a chance to explain her situation, "They are right. I was taken away by the spirits." She looked down and continued, "It's only natural people think I'm strange."

"But that wasn't your fault. It's not like you wanted to be taken away." Haku argued. For long, before Jiraiya had taken him in and even for some time after that, he had thought the same. That it was his fault that his father came to know about his and his mother's Kekkei-Genkai. Every time he scrapped the streets to live the next day, he thought he should have been the one to die instead of his mother. Only after many years of spending his life with Jiraiya, meeting the Senju twins, did he realize that it was not exactly the case. Though he still blamed himself for his mother's death, he now lived and trained to prevent anything of that sort happening again.

Isaribi's answer reflected the thoughts his former self had, "That doesn't matter. The truth is most humans would never associate with someone as different as I am. You don't know." She finished with a sigh.

 _'But I do!'_ Haku wanted to yell but only managed to do so in his head. As much as he wanted to tell her that, there was still a chance Isaribi was working with the enemy. And giving the enemy any extra titbits to work with would be a big folly on his part.

The rhythmic sounds of hoofs striking the ground broke the atmosphere. Both looked up to see what looked like a Samurai riding a horse along the coast. He soon rode past them paying them no mind.

If Haku had paid attention to Isaribi instead of the Samurai, he would have seen her eyes narrowing. As it stood, he didn't and without any more words, Isaribi continued to where she originally left off to. Haku wasn't able to do anything to stop her, seeing no reason to. He could tail her and maybe find out what or who the Demon of the Ocean was. But decided against it. The sight of the Samurai had reminded him of the actual mission they were supposed to do.

* * *

With their sensei off to look for their missing teammate alone again, Hinata and Sai employed one of the oldest methods to gather information. They asked around. Truly though, if Hinata had used her Byakugan at that moment she probably would have spotted him. But as it stood, she didn't and now they were stuck using the slow way.

"So, you say that your friend was lost at sea last night?" The women they were asking, asked back.

"Yes. We thought that if a boat left port last night, someone here probably would have seen something." Hinata answered.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think I can be of any help to you. Lately, the villagers have been staying away from the sea at night because they are all scared of the Demon." The woman explained.

"Oh! I see." Hinata said disappointedly.

"He has been taken away by the spirits." Another older woman spoke getting everyone's attention on her. "I'm afraid the Demon of the Ocean has taken another victim."

"Mother, don't frighten them like that." The younger woman admonished the older one, apparently her mother.

"We've heard of this 'Taken by the spirits' at the port. Can you tell us what you know of it?" Sai was the one to ask the question. He knew it was not the case. Mainly because they knew of the exact cause of Haku's disappearance. But if that was how everyone else was 'taken by the spirits', then it would give more credence to their theory of shinobi involvement even more.

"I can, but what good will it do? Talking about that won't bring your friend back." The women answered rather guardedly.

"But still…" Hinata requested.

The woman looked uncomfortable, "Please, you must forgive us. This subject isn't something we can discuss with outsiders."

"We might be able to help your village. We are in-fact tasked to get rid of this Demon of the Ocean." Sai told her.

The woman looked shocked, "R-really? You are?"

She contemplated for a bit before relenting, "Alright then. For as long as I've known, generations of fishermen have told the legend of the demon island. The legend warns against even going near the isolated place they call the Island of Demons. From the beginning, the waters of demon island were rich in fish, but the hidden reefs there made it too dangerous for boats. Most people heeded the legend and stayed away."

"But one unusually cool summer around 10 years ago, the fish disappeared from the sea. We had no choice, so I and my husband ventured into the treacherous waters. We caught many fish, but when I returned to the surface, I was stunned! The boat was empty. My husband was nowhere to be seen. Since then, one by one, everyone who approaches that island has disappeared. Even those who went to search for the missing."

Sai and Hinata were shocked after hearing the tale. But it was not the fact that people were disappearing that shocked them. They already had some knowledge of the machinations behind that. No, what shocked them was the fact that this was happening for 10 years now and nothing had been done about it.

"But we heard something about a girl who returned from being taken away," Hinata asked.

"Oh yes, Isaribi." The woman answered.

Hinata looked at Sai. They both nodded to each other.

"Please, will you tell us where she lives?" Hinata requested.

* * *

After meeting with their sensei, who they had to search for first, they informed her of everything they had gathered. Not willing to waste any more time all of them raced through the trees to Isaribi's house. Though they had to stop midway after spotting the said girl walking along the beach.

"Sensei, that's her." Hinata informed her sensei before asking, "What do we do, sensei?"

"Let's find out where she's headed," Anko suggested.

Isaribi just walked forward, but the few cautious looks she gave around her made her behaviour suspicious to the team.

"Let's follow discreetly. We don't want her to know we are following." Anko ordered before leaping down from her perch, her two students behind her.

They saw Isaribi walk into a cave which prompted Anko to turn to Hinata.

Hinata getting the signal turned on her penetrative and telescopic vision to keep Isaribi in sight. Sadly, those features of her Byakugan together made using the 360-degree sight a difficult job. Hence making her miss Haku who was closing up from behind them.

The team moved on to follow Isaribi into the cave when Hinata gasped.

"What is it?" Anko asked.

"I'm not sure how but she seems to have transformed into...something not completely human. She has what looks like fins on her legs and arms. There's also one on her head." Hinata answered, shocking her team.

It didn't take them long to visually confirm the fact. The cave was short and opened into a small basin covered by walls made of rocks. There they saw what Hinata had described but in more detail. Not only Isaribi had those features she described, but her whole body seemed to be covered in scales.

Their arrival surprised Isaribi making her hiss at them before diving into the water to flee.

Hinata and Sai immediately followed to capture her. But their sensei seemed rooted in place. A sudden pain, which was acting up quite frequently in the last two days, made her grit her teeth and clutch her shoulder. The sight of Isaribi's transformed body made some memories surface. Memories that were buried so deep that no amount of prying could get them out. She saw images of a similar-looking creature in a glass tube floating in amniotic fluids.

Meanwhile, her team gave the transformed Isaribi a chase. Isaribi's swimming speed though made their chase difficult. They were running against her swimming and they still couldn't catch up. Lacking any long-range techniques, Hinata took out a kunai with an exploding tag on it and threw it at a top of a small hole in the rock formation that was surrounding the basin.

The kunai hit true, though it wouldn't have mattered much since its main purpose was what happened after it. The tag on the kunai exploded, making the rocks crumble and block Isaribi's path out.

While Isaribi managed to dodge the falling rocks underwater, she was quickly bound by ninja wire as soon as she surfaced, courtesy of Sai.

"Give up Isaribi-san. There's no escape." Sai told his prisoner.

Hinata just looked sadly at her. Isaribi growled at them before all their attention was diverted to the recently arrived Haku, who ran towards his team.

"I've been looking all over for you." He told his team.

"Haku-kun! Thank goodness, we were worried about you." Hinata said quite relieved to have finally found their last team member.

"Unfortunately, you are a bit too late Haku-san. As you can see, we captured the Demon of the Ocean." Sai informed his last teammate.

Haku turned towards the captured 'Demon' and looked at her sadly, "So I see. I suspected that Isaribi-san may have had a connection to the Demon but didn't expect her to be the one."

Isaribi couldn't look up anymore and was more looking like she was trying to hide herself.

"Isaribi-san, just tell us why do this?" Haku asked.

"Or more importantly," Anko added coming up to her team while still clutching her shoulder, "Who did this to you?"

The question shocked Isaribi. It was natural and easier for people to assume that she was just born that way, that she was not human to begin with. For her to ask that question meant that person knew more about the matter than other people. That was obviously the case here since Anko's team looked at their sensei incredulously.

Not willing to risk her goal, Isaribi showed that the scales on her body were not for show and tore through the ninja ropes before swimming away again.

Haku moved to stop her but stopped on seeing a figure form out of water. Two figures to be exact. One was Isaribi in the hands of another person that was easily recognized by the Genins. It was one of the mask-wearing ninjas that they had saved Isaribi from earlier.

"I don't know who you are, but hand over Isaribi-san right now." Haku, not willing to give Isaribi up so easily, demanded.

The ninja laughed, "You must be dreaming. She is an important lab rat. If we lose her, I'm the one who will be held responsible." He said before forming a hand seal. Similar to their encounter on the previous night, a whirlpool formed around him and Isaribi pulling them underwater.

Haku moved again to stop them but was in-turn stopped by Anko, "Don't chase him too far. Remember yesterday."

Haku gritted his teeth before he thought of using a different method. He made a similar hand seal, but instead of forming a whirlpool, the water around him started turning into ice starting from his feet. Sadly, he couldn't direct it to go in a straight line, so all the water in front and around him started to freeze in an arc which made the process slower. Also, the sheer volume of water added to that slowness, which ultimately made him lose his target who vanished underwater just before it turned into ice.

Adding to their problems, his sensei soon after collapsed on to the water surface for reasons completely unknown to him. And his team was supposed to meet the shipment they were supposed to guard in a matter of few hours.

* * *

Reduced to nursing their sensei back to conscious was Hinata, her teammates not being able to do anything. Meanwhile, they also discussed what they had gathered so far with Haku sharing his encounter with Isaribi.

"So, Isaribi-san was the one who saved you from drowning?" Hinata asked after Haku finished his explanation.

"Yes. If it wasn't for her, I'd probably not be here." He answered.

"That may be, but it's clear that she is in league with the enemy. She may also be the reason for all the disappearances happening in the village." Sai commented.

"No, she's not behind those." Anko's voice startled her students.

"Sensei! You are awake! Are you feeling okay?" Hinata inquired worriedly.

"Yes, I'm alright. But more importantly, as I was saying she is not the cause of people disappearing. In-fact she is also a victim." Anko clarified.

"What do you mean, sensei?" Haku asked.

"She and many others did disappear mysteriously 10 years ago. But it wasn't because of any demon. They were being snatched up and used as test subjects. In experiments conducted by Orochimaru. This demon is a result of those experiments." Anko explained shocking her team.

It was difficult not to have some knowledge about the traitorous one among the three Sannin, it was taught in the academy after all. But they didn't teach about the depth of inhumanity Orochimaru went up to. Hinata was close to one of the Sannin, but they didn't talk much about Orochimaru in the Senju house, except for how you should stay away from him or in case you can't, how to best fight him. Sai was not that up in the chain of command in ROOT to know about the dealings between Danzo and Orochimaru, but those deals were one of the charges placed against him for his execution and were made public. But that was still just the surface.

Haku was the only one of them who had heard exactly what Orochimaru had been doing. Or as exact as Jiraiya knew of them. Being his teacher, Jiraiya ensured his student knew about what he considered as one of his biggest failures in life, and that was not being able to stop Orochimaru's descent into darkness. He was building Haku to take his place and it was vital for anyone in his place to know as much about Orochimaru as possible. Just in case he failed to correct his mistakes it would be up to Haku to take the snakes heads off.

"So Orochimaru is mixed up in this? I was already aware of the kind of experiments he performs, but this is the first time I've come across one myself." Haku admitted.

"The first that you are aware of," Anko added solemnly, confusing him along with the others.

Anko clutched her shoulder, where the cursed mark resided. She had to tell them. She was responsible for their safety. While she didn't want to believe that Orochimaru could control her using the mark in any way, the truth was she didn't know. Nobody exactly knew what the mark was for. Nobody except for Orochimaru that is. That was one of the reasons many were opposed to her appointment as a Jounin sensei. They couldn't trust her enough.

And frankly, even Anko couldn't. She was loyal to the village. That was without a doubt. But without knowing what this cursed mark was for, she wasn't sure if Orochimaru could make her do something she didn't want to. But her Hokage had trust in her. And after a month of training together, so did her students. That was why she had to tell them about it.

"Orochimaru…was my Jounin sensei," Anko started surprising her students more, "Before being found of his crime, he took me with him for a mission. Or at least he told me it was a mission. He brought me here, more specifically to the Demon Island and showed me the experiments he was working on. I did find them horrible, but he told me that the Hokage already knew about those. And I believed him, like a fool."

Silence spread over after her admission. All of them contemplating on what she admitted.

It was broken by Hinata, "I…I think it is natural for a Genin to believe in their sensei."

Haku agreed, "Yes, you had no reason to believe that he was lying. Orochimaru was a respected shinobi at that time. Even if you were not his student obeying or believing him would have been natural. But you said something about Isaribi not being the first of his experiment that I encountered, what do you mean by that?" He asked.

Anko was happy that her students believed in her, but she had still not told them everything, "I don't remember much of what happened after that, except that some ANBUs from the village found me on the island and I had a mark on my shoulder. That mark was put by Orochimaru. It is called a cursed mark." She said making Hinata gasp.

Turning her attention to the shocked Hyuuga, "No one knows what the mark really does, except for causing me pain that is, but what you are thinking may be true as well, Hinata. While different looking, this cursed mark might have features similar to the mark used by your clan." She looked at Sai before adding, "Or it might be something like the cursed mark used by Danzo on his ROOT." She looked away before finishing, "Or it might be something completely different. That is why I want to ask you something."

"If this mark ever turns me into an enemy of the village, I want you to kill me." She told her students seriously stupefying them.

"W-what? B-but sensei…" Hinata tried to argue but Anko cut her off, "No buts Hinata. I know it may be a lot to ask, but I don't want to be the reason for your deaths or anyone in the village."

"Don't worry sensei. We won't need to do anything like that. Because you won't give up against Orochimaru and we will defeat him before that." Haku reassured.

Anko smiled, _'I wish I had that much confidence in me'._ She thought. She stood up before saying, "Enough of that now. I think we should pay a visit to this Demon of the Ocean first."

"But sensei what about our mission? Our first priority is to guard the government's money." Sai asked.

"That's right. And what do you think we need to guard it against?" Anko questioned back with a smirk.

* * *

It didn't take a genius to figure out where the enemy's base was. Just looking at the name of the enemy was enough to tell you that their target should be on Demon Island. The fact that most disappearances happened whenever someone got close to that Island was just another clue.

So, Team 11 headed there. This time, their target clear, they didn't waste any time and crossed the waters to the demon island as fast as they could. Hinata's Byakugan combined with Sai's life-given painted mice added to Anko's reacquired memories of the place, easily found them the entrance to the supposed 'Lair of the Demon'. Though, truth be told, it was a simple cave entrance which was quite easy to be found by anyone. The enemy was probably relying on the fact that no one dared to approach the island.

With Haku in the front followed by Sai then Hinata and Anko at the very back, the team moved deeper into the cave where they encountered a very obviously suspicious looking ajar door. Nodding to her team, Hinata signalled them forward.

Walking into the room the male portion of the team was shocked to see more half fish-half human creatures floating in the amniotic fluid-filled glass containers. Hinata had already seen them with her Byakugan, but seeing them up close horrified her nonetheless.

Close by, Isaribi was waiting for someone from the team to walk up to any of the containers, but it seemed like none of them was compelled to do so.

"Come out Isaribi-san, we already know you are there," Hinata called out.

Isaribi's eyes widened. She didn't have any knowledge of the penetrative vision of the Byakugan and was surprised that someone already knew of her presence. Already discovered, there was nothing else she could do but to walk out of her hiding spot to face the team.

Sadly, Isaribi was not a ninja. She was never trained as one. Being captured by Orochimaru early on and then experimented, the only powers she had were the ones her fish form gave her. None of the planning was done by her either. She just followed orders and did what she was told to. So, she forgot the fact that in addition to three Genins there was usually a Jounin with them.

The result was a kunai to her throat, courtesy of Anko who had hanged back, out of the room just for this moment. As Hinata had already said, everyone on Team 11 was already aware of Isaribi's presence in the room as well as the hidden traps in front of the glass containers. Since they didn't want to hurt Isaribi without knowing what role she exactly played in all this scheme, they decided to lure her out instead of directly confronting her and starting a fight.

Isaribi gritted her teeth. The second trap was not supposed to be used so early, but she had no choice. She moved slightly forward, making the kunai hit her throat. But instead of a cut that should have appeared, the bandages around her neck tore off showing black scales that were normally present in her fish form. Apparently, the scales were quite hard, since the kunai just clang harmlessly on them. Getting enough leverage, she pushed herself back directly into Anko, knocking the Jounin back with her. As soon as both of them were out of the room, she closed the door and ran off.

Anko couldn't decide if she should chase after the girl or see what kind of trap she had sprung on her Genin. A loud sound from the room made the decision for her. Unfortunately the door had already locked itself.

"Are you guys alright?" She asked through the door.

A second passed before Haku's voice answered back, "We are alright Sensei. Go after Isaribi-san."

Sensing no sense of danger in Haku's voice, Anko relented and ran after Isaribi.

* * *

Inside the room, Isaribi had indeed activated a trap. After the door closed, one side of the wall rose up to let out three creatures which from the outside looked feline in nature but had some features that never should have been on them.

However, no matter how much intimidating they looked, the Genin of Team 11 were hardly affected. They were already aware of their presence, thanks to Hinata again. Though truthfully even Hinata didn't know that the wall could move. She only saw three odd creatures in a room. The retraction of the wall was a surprise even to her.

That is when they heard their sensei, "Are you guys alright?" She asked from the other side of the door.

Haku looked at his teammates, who shrugged, "We are alright Sensei. Go after Isaribi-san." He told her. They heard her footsteps going far from them.

"Well do you think these kitties hate being wet just like the regular cats?" Haku asked his team with a smirk.

* * *

Anko limped forward because of the increasing pain caused by the cursed mark. She reached a door, not unlike the one they found before. Peeking in she saw the silhouettes of two people, one sitting on a tall-backed throne-like chair, the other standing beside it, both in the dark part of the room hiding their actual identities.

 _'Found him!'_ Anko thought.

Walking into the room, she moved forward calmly towards the other two occupants. Excepting a familiar, but completely unwelcome, face to greet her, she was nonetheless surprised when the person hiding in the shadows though familiar turned out to be completely different than who she was expecting.

"What the?…what's going on? Amachi!?" Anko gasped in surprise.

This Amachi walked out of the shadows. He was a plain-looking guy with grey hair and was wearing a usual scientist's garb.

Amachi smirked, "Welcome, or should I say long time no see. I have to admit, I'm a little surprised that you returned after all that happened back then."

Anko gritted her teeth. He obviously remembered whatever she had forgotten, "What are you talking about?" She asked.

"You mean, you don't remember?" Amachi asked back taunting her.

"Look I don't have time to waste on you. Where is Orochimaru?" Anko demanded.

"Orochimaru?" Amachi asked in fake confusion.

"Cut the act he is here, isn't he?" Anko asked through gritted teeth when another bout of pain raked through her body.

Amachi looked contemplative, "So the curse mark is acting up even after he split. I wouldn't have guessed that was possible. Well, you are half-right. Orochimaru was here, but that was well over two weeks at this point."

It was unknown if he lied or not. But anyway, "I… don't believe you." Anko didn't believe him.

Amachi smirked, "Believe whatever you want, it doesn't matter to me."

"So, you mean to tell me that the pain I'm feeling right now, is from him being here almost a full month ago," Anko asked.

Before Amachi could answer, the door opened again letting the Genins of Team 11 in. They stopped and took positions beside their sensei.

"Well well, you brought Genin. Look at you, you are all grown up now Anko." Amachi said slyly.

"And, who are you supposed to be?" Haku asked.

"Meet Amachi. He is a medical ninja who has teamed up with Orochimaru and conducts research here. His master's not around though. This all rigmarole is Amachi's doing." Anko explained.

"So, he is behind this all. You are behind all these crazy experiments." Haku stated.

Amachi for the first time now looked slighted. He didn't like it when someone insulted his experiments, "Crazy!?" He exclaimed, "This isn't a joke. I've devoted my entire life to this research."

Haku sneered, "Research?"

Amachi moved sideways to reveal Isaribi standing behind him, "Look here!" He said while pointing at her, "This girl is capable of adapting to an aquatic environment. Combining the ability to breathe underwater with advanced strength and agility. It's always been my dream, a ninja core for underwater warfare. And this girl here is the first step."

The whole team 11, except for Anko, was stunned. Anko knew how deranged Amachi was, so this didn't surprise her. Though it did help her solve the mystery of the Demon of the Ocean.

"A…a ninja core for underwater warfare?" Hinata asked still shocked.

Amachi made a crazed expression, "That's right! An unparalleled military force that could move freely above the land as well as in the sea. Once I've done it, we'll spread across the nations and take complete control of marine shipping routes." He exclaimed, "Astounding, isn't it? With that kind of strength, the world will kneel before me. And Orochimaru will rue the day he abandoned my work. But it will be too late by then!"

Everyone, including Isaribi, was disgusted with Amachi's crazy plan.

Haku was the one to express it, "These are people you are talking about, not your tools." He said.

"Oh! That's a shame. I figured someone your age would be able to grasp the importance of my work." Amachi said feigning sadness, "Oh well, no big deal. Your just another bunch of brainless guinea pigs. Who cares what you think."

Haku clicked his tongue before taking out senbons to throw at him. His hands were halted by Isaribi jumping in the way.

Amachi laughed, "Thank you, Isaribi."

"Isaribi-san. Please, out of the way." Haku requested.

"I'm not moving," Isaribi replied.

"Why are you protecting him? He is the one who did this to you." Hinata beat Haku in asking.

"I know but…but I don't have a choice now. He is the only person who can turn me back to normal again. He promised me that he would." Isaribi told them. She proceeded to remove the bandages from her head showing the team the scales that covered some parts of her face.

"Look at me." She started, "People in this world judge others based solely on their appearance. They stay away when they see me covered in bandages. Imagine what they'd do when they saw a monster covered in scales. I just want my body back. I want to be human. I will do whatever it takes to be myself again."

Haku's face softened, "But you still are human." He said shocking her. "It doesn't matter what you look like. And yet you are attacking ships with these people and sending them to the bottom. It's not the face that makes someone a monster, it's the choices they make in their life." Haku tried to explain.

"Just shut up! Stop it!" Isaribi cried out covering her ears, "I don't want to hear anymore. Just shut up. Why does everyone have to be so cruel to me?"

"You…you don't get it. You are just like how I used to be earlier. We are alike." Haku tried to reason but Isaribi wasn't willing to listen anymore.

"Be quiet! You are human, aren't you? You have no idea what I'm going through. I…I only wish I was like you." She said kneeling on the ground holding her face in her hands, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Amachi, seeing his chance to keep Isaribi faithful to him longer, walked forward and spoke as truthfully as he could, "Now, now don't cry. I'll have you back to normal in no time, Isaribi."

Anko suddenly perked up and dived to cover Hinata who was standing on the far left of her, when the wall on that side blew up, burying the whole team under the debris.

A black-haired, spectacle-wearing man stepped out of the hole that was now created in the wall after that explosion, "That paper bomb was right on the money. Thanks for distracting them for as long Isaribi." He said.

"Take care of them, will you. Isaribi let's go." Amachi ordered while walking away, Isaribi following. The new man was left with the rest of Team 11, which was mostly buried under the debris of the wall.

Hinata who was under Anko asked, "Sensei, are you okay?" She only got a groan as an answer.

Meanwhile, the guy walked up to Haku and picked him up. His arms, oddly enough, extended and warped around Haku squeezing him.

"Haku-kun!" Hinata exclaimed.

Sai, who had remained quiet in all this, made a hand seal making a tiger drawn on his scroll come to life and circle around the enemy.

The enemy, in turn, was shocked, "What kind of weird jutsu is this?"

"You are one to talk!" Haku remarked through gritted teeth, his right hand forming a seal as well.

The temperature of the room dropped, especially for the glasses-wearing ninja who was holding onto the source of it. He was forced to let go of Haku because of his muscles growing numb due to holding the super cold Haku.

"What…what is happening?" He screamed backpedalling away from Haku, unfortunately directly into the claws of Sai's ink tiger.

A few accurately placed senbons by Haku as well as a few Juken to vital points by Hinata later he was immobilized for good measure.

Their victory was short-lived however when the whole building began to shake.

"Shit! They're trying to take us out with the building." Anko who was still in pain, from the curse mark as well as from taking the full brunt of the previous explosion said.

"We have to evacuate. Hinata-san, me and Sai will take sensei, lead us to the nearest exit." Haku said. With a simple nod, both boys supported their still prone sensei and followed behind Hinata who had darted through the previously made whole in the wall.

Thanks to the Byakugan, it didn't take them long to find the exit. But just before they could get out though, the mouth of the cave caved in blocking their exit.

"Shit! Hinata-san are there any other exits?" Haku asked.

Anko, now standing on her own power, said, "There's no time to look for it." She bit her thumb, made a few hand seals and slammed her palm on the ground, "Summoning Jutsu!".

The cave was filled with smoke before the whole team found themselves standing on the fleshy tongue of a snake.

Closing its mouth, shielding the team, the summoned snake broke through the wall of rocks and reached outside before opening its mouth again, releasing the unharmed Team 11.

"Finally, fresh air." Haku breathed out in relief.

Anko sadly was not able to share the relief. Using chakra to summon triggered her cursed mark again restarting the pain. It caused her to palm her shoulder and kneel on the ground.

"Sensei!" Hinata exclaimed in concern.

Anko though waved it off, "Let's go, there's no time to waste. It's already time for the fleet to depart."

Haku's eyes widened in realization, "Oh yeah! The fleet's sailing into a trap. We have to reach them before its too late." He looked around and spotted a conveniently docked rowboat, "Let's use that boat."

His sensei and team agreed.

* * *

With the fleet to the Water country

"Still no word from the leaf ninja? They were expected to accompany the fleet into port. What could have happened to them?" Captain of the fleet, Hitode thought out loud.

His two crew members that were with him did not have an answer.

But one another thought he did. He ran towards his captain with a scroll in his hands, "Captain, we just received this!"

Hitode took the scroll and gave it a read. Whatever was written definitely filled him with joy as he laughed loud before showing the scroll to his crew, "Well, well it seems we were wrong to have ever doubted them. They drove the Demon of the Ocean out of these waters last night."

Just like him, his crew too rejoiced. They were relieved to finally being able to sail without the fear of the demon.

Seeing that it was already getting late, the captain immediately ordered to depart, which they did unknowing of the trap that they were sailing into.

* * *

The fleet was crossing the reef infested waters of demon island when they were caught by surprise. The two escort ships in front of them suddenly started to move towards each other, heading for an imminent crash. Hitode, who was in the ship behind, the one with the correct cargo, saw all of this happen without any idea why. Realising they too were directly heading in the direction of one of those ships, Hitode ordered to steer theirs away, "Quickly, hard to port!"

The crew member on the wheel tried to do so but found he couldn't budge it.

"What are you doing? I said hard to port!" Hitode commanded again.

"I'm trying sir, but she is not responding." The crew member replied.

"What? What are you talking about?" Hitode asked. All the while their ship was turning towards the one before them which had stopped for some reason.

"Can't budge it, it's no use." The crew member informed.

Seeing no way to avoid a collision, Hitode told his crew member to brace for impact. Which ultimately it did, destroying both the ships for good measure.

"Must be the demons doing." Hitode thought out loud again.

One of his crew members came forward, "Thank you for delivering the ship." He said confusing Hitode.

"What do you mean? What's going on here?" Hitode asked still confused that his crew member would say that.

The crew member though was suddenly covered in white smoke which, after it dissipated, revealed a completely different person garbed in a scientist's coat.

Hitode's eye widened before his face took an angry expression, "Who are you? What you do want?"

"This fleet and its cargo. Hand it over peacefully and I'll spare your life." Amachi answered.

Seeing one of his crew members moving to attack the enemy, Hitode continued to speak to distract him, "You are out of your mind."

Unfortunately, that crew member was blown away by a jet of water before he could even get close to Amachi, turning everyone's -except Amachi's- attention on the preparator. What they saw scared them to their bones.

A fish-like humanoid monster with black scales covering its body was growling at them while hanging off from the side of the boat. They got even more scared when it climbed the ship and started to stalk towards them.

They had to look up though when a huge fireball started to form just above them. They were no ninja nor did they used chakra like some samurais, so it was impossible for them to know that the fireball they were seeing was just an illusion. So, when that fireball descended and spread all over their ship, they panicked and abandoned it by jumping into the water.

Though it seemed that was not the best decision either. As soon as they jumped into the water, a whirlpool formed around them trying to suck everyone up.

They were saved however when the person responsible for causing the whirlpool got distracted by a bird slamming into his face and, oddly enough, burst into black ink covering it.

Sai smiled at the ninja who had taken Isaribi away from them before, "I'm sorry, but I'll have you fight me now." The ninja just glared at him.

Saved from being drowned, the crew members as well as their captain where being directed to the only floating boat by Hinata. They needn't worry however since the ever-dangerous reefs were this time saving them by giving them a place to stand on.

On the ship, Amachi was obviously not happy that his plans were foiled. His unhappiness increased when he heard Anko's voice saying, "Man, that's really low, even by your standard's, weirdo. Though I'm glad you showed up, I still got a few questions I want answered."

"Isaribi-san, please stop this." Haku's voice cut in snapping their attention, "If you keep doing this, you really will be a monster."

Isaribi was conflicted. It's not that she didn't know that what Haku was saying was true. But at the same time, her desire to become human again trumped any other kind of feelings that she had. So, when Amachi ordered her to take Haku out, she did so without hesitation.

She ran at Haku, intending to send him into the water where she had more advantage. Haku, trying to harm her as less as he could, tried to stop her with well-placed senbons. Unfortunately, the scales on Isaribi's body proved to be harder than the senbons. She passed through them, the senbons bouncing off of her scales harmlessly, and successfully tackled him along with herself into the water.

Haku tried to reach the surface as fast as he could. He knew he was at a disadvantage in water. But Isaribi grabbed his legs and pulled him down with her.

Haku had to quickly find a solution before he ran out of the short amount of air that he was able to take in before he got submerged. That's when he got an idea, _'I may not be able to breathe underwater, but I know who can!'_ Haku thought while making hand seals, _'Water Style: Water Clone Jutsu!'_

The water around them started to collate in multiple places before forming into exact copies of Haku.

Seeing the clones, Isaribi let go of him since it would be impossible for her to fight this many enemies with her hands busy. She used her advanced agility underwater to duck and weave under the water clones' assaults, while Haku swam to the surface using that as a distraction.

Finally surfacing, Haku had to take long breaths since he wasn't able to take in a lot before getting tackled into the water. He swam and reached the nearest surface where he could stand. He didn't have to wait long before Isaribi surfaced as well. He had to give it to her, and Amachi even though he didn't want too, she was indeed a force to be reckoned with underwater.

"Isaribi-san, what will I have to do so you would understand that you are putting peoples lives in jeopardy? Don't you care about them at all?" Haku asked sadly.

"Since you asked, no." Isaribi answered frankly shocking him, "Their lives mean nothing to me. Your life means nothing to me." She said before shooting a jet of water at him from her mouth.

Haku stood there unintimidated. The water jet hit him, making him take a step back but at the same time, it seemed that the water literally broke apart into crystals as soon as it touched him.

Isaribi was surprised to see that.

"You lie, Isaribi-san," Haku said making her grit her teeth. She jumped up from the water landing on the rock behind Haku.

"Do you think I care who gets hurt? Who drowns? There's only one thing I care about, and that's being returned to the way I was." Isaribi claimed. She ran at him, wanting him to be in the water again. But this time Haku was ready. She was fast in the water but her speed above ground was that of a normal human. Maybe slightly more, but far lesser than Haku. He easily sidestepped her.

"I think it's about time somebody woke you up to see reason," Haku said before chopping her on the back of her neck. It was only because of the reinforcement given by her scales that she was just knocked down on the ground instead of getting completely knocked out.

It was also because of those scales that Haku didn't come out unscathed from such a simple move. Some of her scales had come off and pierced his hand.

Haku looked at the scales that got embedded in his hand, "Believe me. I know how painful it is to be treated like a monster, when you are not needed by anyone or how painful it can be to be all alone." He said sadly while picking the scales out, "But that still doesn't justify hurting others." He looked at Isaribi's prone form and yelled at her, "You saved my life! I know you still have kindness in you, Isaribi-san. You do still care!"

All the while, Isaribi just stayed silent. Listening to the words, that the rational part of her always used to think, coming from someone else.

* * *

Meanwhile, the scientist that was in the middle of all this was not faring so well against his opponent. Obviously, since even though he was a medical 'nin', his fighting prowess could be said to be at most at Genin level. Against someone like Anko, he didn't have any chance. Unless of course, he had a trick up his sleeve that could change the tide of the battle.

Which he did. He jumped back from Anko and took out a jar filled with some pink substance and threw it at her.

Anko though was also an expert in using things like poisons and stuff and knew that you should stay away from things you didn't recognize. So, she jumped back as well, avoiding the pink gas that came out when the jar broke on hitting the deck floor.

Amachi clicked his tongue but used this time of run off in the direction of Isaribi and Haku. Anko naturally went after him.

Amachi landed on another reef close to the one Haku and Isaribi were on, "You are useless. What the hell is taking so long?" He asked Isaribi getting their attention, "He is just a Genin, how hard can it be to finish him off?"

Isaribi lowered her head, "I'm sorry, its j-" She tried to explain but Amachi cut her off, "Be quiet I'll do it."

Haku, though wasn't interested, "As much as I want to beat you into a pulp, it seems I won't get that honour."

"Wha-" Amachi tried to say but had to jump away to avoid getting bit by multiple snakes.

"Now, now don't think I'm letting you off that easily," Anko said after landing at the place that Amachi had just vacated.

Amachi scowled, "Isaribi, take care of this nuisance."

"I'm sorry, but Isaribi-san won't be available from now on," Haku said confusing everyone including his sensei.

Isaribi went to ask what he was talking about but a sudden chill all over her body stopped her. Soon after, her whole body got encased in ice leaving only her head out.

Even though the situation was quite serious, Anko couldn't help but comment, "My, my Haku-kun. I didn't know you liked your women tied up~. As expected of Jiraiya-sama's student though." Haku's, as well as Isaribi's faces, turned red.

"T…that's n…n…not what this is, sensei. Please, f…focus on the fight." Haku was probably embarrassed, but during narrating this to Team 8 he said it was the chill of the ice that he had made that made him stutter.

Anko just chuckled in response. Amachi clicked his teeth, "I am getting sick of this now. I was going to dissect her and harvest her organs for further experiments." Amachi confessed shocking Isaribi, "But that's not necessary anymore." He finished before gritting his teeth.

Everyone watched in shocked silence as his clothes tore off showing scales not different than Isaribi's. But what was different however was the increase in the muscle tone of his body overall. He not only got taller, his upper body got beefed up by muscles before developing scales all over. And unlike Isaribi his face also changed completely to that of...something, robbing him off of anything that would define him as human, except for the fact that he was still bi-pedal.

"As you can see, I have already transformed myself into a fully reformed model. Perfected for mortal combat. I call this my Kaima form." Amachi claimed proudly.

Contrary to his feelings on his transformation, Haku and Anko were just disgusted.

"Perfected, you say? I would say you just got uglier." Anko snorted out.

Amachi just laughed off the taunt, "That's why I'm different than you simpletons. This form isn't meant for aesthetics, it is for battle, both above ground and underwater."

Isaribi couldn't believe what she was hearing however, "B…but you said you will turn me back. YOU PROMISED!"

Amachi continued to laugh, "And you believed me? Really how naïve could you be? Why would I do that? Among the hundreds of specimens, you were the only one that lived and was successful. I obviously had to study why that was. So, I had to keep you around. But now that I am successful, your usefulness has come to an end." He admitted before shooting a water cannon jutsu at her.

And just like the time when Isaribi did it, the water jet turned into ice and then small crystals before reaching her.

"You won't be harming her anymore," Haku stated.

"And I will be harming you a lot." Anko picked up before sending her snakes at him again.

Amachi swiped his left arm, shooting scales at the incoming summoned snakes dispelling them, only to get hit by the same jutsu he used on Isaribi earlier. Though his beefed-up body absorbed most of the force, it didn't stop him from glaring at Haku.

Haku smirked, "How do you like being at the other end of your own Jutsu?"

Amachi clicked his tongue again. He wanted to answer but had to jump away when he felt intense heat approaching him.

"Aww~ I was going to roast you well." Anko fake whined when her great fireball didn't hit him.

"Enough of this!" Amachi spat before biting his thumb, drawing blood. He made some hand seals and slammed his hands on the ground, "Summoning Jutsu: Umibozu."

The water around them started to move before a large portion of it swelled up. Anko and Haku braced themselves for anything that may come up but nothing did. Three shapes formed on the blob of water resembling something close to a mouth and two eyes.

"Meet my latest creation, the sea monster: Umibozu." Amachi told them proudly, "Now Umibozu, finish them off." He ordered.

Some water from the blob extended and formed what looked like an arm, and went to grab Haku, who was the closest. But because of its consistency, it was slow. Too slow in-fact, and Haku easily jumped away from it.

Unfortunately, when Amachi had mentioned 'them', he didn't exactly say who the 'them' was and after missing Haku, Umibozu went for the incapacitated Isaribi, who had by now undone her transformation.

"Isaribi-san!" Haku yelled as he saw her get trapped in the water blob. Because of the higher temperature water surrounding her, Haku's ice melted quickly freeing Isaribi. She redid her transformation allowing her to breathe again and tried to swim to the surface of the water blob. Though she quickly found out, that the surface tension of the water was too strong for her to break through.

Amachi laughed at her futile attempts to escape, "Don't bother. Umibozu's body consists entirely of water. It's almost like a mobile water prison. Its surface is as strong as steel."

Not believing Amachi's boasts, Anko threw a kunai at it anyway. Sadly, Amachi's admission rang true and the kunai bounced off of the creature harmlessly.

"Haku, can't you just freeze this slime?" Anko asked.

"Well, I'm not sure. That is a lot of water. What's there to stop it from using the water below it to melt itself? And besides Isaribi-san is still…wait a minute. I got it." Haku answered before yelling, "Isaribi-san, swim down into the sea. There should not be any surface tension there."

Even though his voice came a bit muffled due to all the water around her, Isaribi heard him anyway. She faced down and swam as fast as she could and just as Haku said, didn't feel any resistance when she entered the vast water of the sea. She quickly changed course and swam far away from the monster.

"What!?" Amachi was shocked. He was a scientist and still didn't realize the obvious flaw that his monster had. Though in his defence, most people wouldn't be able to breathe that long enough underwater to make that kind of escape.

Anko laughed at Amachi's shocked expression, "Hahaha! Serves you right, weirdo."

Haku used this chance to amass as much chakra as he could. He formed the hand seals for his Jutsu and yelled, "Here goes nothing. Ice Style: Ice Prison Jutsu!"

Again, the water below his foot started to turn into ice. Although quicker than before. But this time his enemy was not quick enough to escape anyway and soon all of Umibozu's body had turned into ice.

Acting quickly, Anko threw a kunai with an exploding tag on it, which exploded and turned the Umibozu Ice sculpture into million pieces.

"NOOO!" Amachi screamed, shocked that his powerful creation was taken down so easily. He didn't get enough time to wallow however when he got hit by high pressured water from behind, courtesy of Isaribi. The water slammed him onto a rock leaving him unconscious as well as turning him back to human.

Haku, having used up almost all of his chakra to turn that big amount of water into ice, wobbled and fell face-first onto the water and with no chakra holding him onto the surface he started to sink.

Anko moved to get him out but Isaribi had already beaten her to it and pulled him onto land.

* * *

All this while, Sai and his opponent were at a stalemate. Sai's ink creatures were not suitable to fight in an area filled with so much water and against a ninja who used water-based attacks. And the enemy's main attack was sucking up chakra from opponents. But to do so, he had to be in direct contact with his target. He could not absorb chakra from thrown Jutsu.

Sadly, for the enemy, Sai was not alone, and he seemed to have forgotten about that fact.

And while during the whole fight Sai's smile had not wavered somehow, even to a complete stranger, looked like it got truer when he said, "It seems everything is over. If you don't mind me asking, what is your name?"

The ninja got confused, "You don't need to know my name. Besides you are soon going to be turned into a lab rat."

Sai's smile though stayed in place, "I see."

The ninja moved to attack again but was interrupted by a voice, "Eight Trigrams: 32 Palms!" Even though it was a close-quarter attack that he could have absorbed chakra from, he was just too surprised to do anything between getting his chakra points sealed.

"You really are as quiet as mouse, huh Hinata-san," Sai commented just as his adversary went down.

The Hinata he was speaking to, in a rare moment of defiance, glared at him before dissolving into water.

"Hmmm, I think I angered her," Sai commented to himself. He looked at his downed opponent, "And it took only 10 per cent of her strength to take him down. Well, it WAS a surprise attack."

* * *

Back on the ship with Team 8 in Present

"And then we tied Amachi and his lackey up, helped reach the money to water country. By the time we got back, Ibiki-sensei was already there with his ship." Haku finished his retelling.

"Wow man, you guys really had a tough time out there. And all we had to do for the most part of the mission was put up with that annoying brat, Idate." Kiba complained.

"And what about that girl, Isaribi?" Sakura asked them.

"She is actually on this ship right now. Ibiki-sensei had taken her for investigation, but Anko-sensei vouched for her, so she was let off for now. But it seems like she would have to provide whatever information she can about Orochimaru." Hinata answered.

"On that note, Naruto-sama," Haku asked, "Can you look at her condition and see if it could be cured?"

Naruto shook his head, "I could, but I don't think I can do anything about it. I have done my own medical research as a mandatory work from my mom, but I'm really not that much of an expert. Besides, since she is a girl, I think it would be better if Namiko or even better mom looked at her.", Naruto explained before asking, "Is that why you brought her along?"

Haku nodded, "I had hoped that Tsunade-sama could help her."

"I'm sure mom would be able to do something," Naruto assured.

* * *

With the Jounins

"So, you were able to remember?" Kurenai asked after Anko had finished her own recounting of the mission.

Anko nodded, "Yeah."

Kurenai was expecting more so when she didn't get any, she prompted, "And?"

"Well, it was not much. He gave me the curse mark as a part of an experiment. Apparently, among 9 others I was the only one who survived." Anko informed shocking her friend.

Anko's smile though caught her off guard, "But it was not him who cast me aside, it was I who chose to not go with him."

"What do you mean?" Kurenai asked not quite getting what her friend was speaking about.

"He said he didn't need me since I lacked the thirst for power and hatred, or basically because I was not insane like him. But he offered to let me go with him just because I had survived the sealing. I declined his offer." Anko said with tears streaming down her face with the smile still on her face. She looked at Kurenai with that tear-streaked face, "I chose my freedom."

Kurenai embraced her friend, who had finally regained the lost part of her life as well as had found the answer to one of the questions that had plagued her life till now.

* * *

Naruto was standing at the hem of the ship looking at the vast ocean in front of him, that was littered with several giant whirlpools. Ibiki had said they had to go through this part since apparently the waters around the Wave country were closed off for some reason. That did put some worry in him since he knew Namiko and her team were in Wave country. But he had confidence in his sister, and others in her team were no weaklings either.

"Beautiful isn't it?" He suddenly asked apparently to no one.

"It is." Came an answer from behind him anyway.

He turned to look at the person behind him with a smirk, "I was talking about the view of the ocean and whirlpools."

Hinata smiled, "Me too."

Naruto's smirk got wider, "Is that so? Somehow, I am getting the feeling that we are not talking about the same thing." He turned back before asking, "So what brings you out here, Hinata-chan? I thought you'd like to get some rest after your mission."

"I can say the same for you, Naruto-kun. In-fact I already had my rest during our journey between Land of Sea and Land of Tea. You on the other hand just finished your mission where you almost ran a marathon with another person on your back. Should I be worried that you are going to change your attire to green once you reach the village?" Hinata shot back.

"Woah! Hey there, it seems you are all in the Lioness mode right now. What got you so fired up? Maybe you should show this side of you more, so Sai won't call you a mouse." Naruto defended himself, instantly gaining himself a scowl from the girl before she looked down.

"Am I…really that hard to notice?" Hinata asked meekly making Naruto blink.

 _'She went from a Lioness to a Mouse in a blink of an eye!'_ Naruto thought with a sweatdrop.

"Are you talking about when you are hiding behind a pole or something, or when you are out in the open?" Naruto asked smiling.

Hinata ducked her head more, red spreading on her cheeks. She hadn't done that in a long while. Well, not since she discovered that the Senju twins could sense chakra since that made it a moot point.

Naruto chuckled, _'Well, you can't deny that whichever mode she is in, she manages to make it look cute.'_ He thought internally.

"Well yeah, unless they could sense chakra, it is quite difficult to sense you when you are hiding." He answered truthfully making Hinata sigh, "But," He added, "Only a complete idiot would not notice you when you are out in the open."

Hinata's cheeks flamed even more on hearing that making Naruto chuckle again.

"Still you came out in the cold ocean air just to ask that?" Naruto asked again.

Hinata breathed in and out to get her composure back before turning serious. She told about him all about the curse mark that was on her sensei and asked, "You think you can take it off? Anko-sensei has helped me this whole month so much, I really want to do it for her."

Naruto sighed, "What's with you and Namiko wanting me to remove cursed marks?" He whispered which thankfully was not caught by Hinata over the sound of water crashing and the ocean wind blowing.

"I would have to look at it before I can say anything about that. But as of right now, I think it's better to ask Ero-oji to try and remove it. Though seeing it is the Orochi-teme's handiwork, I wouldn't be surprised if he hasn't already looked into it. I would also understand if Anko-sensei didn't let him get anywhere near her. He IS a lecher." Naruto answered truthfully.

Hinata nodded. That was an obvious answer. Even though she wanted to believe that Naruto was a great seal master, at the moment Jiraiya was definitely a more experienced one.

"I wonder how Namiko-chan is doing in her mission. Neji-niisan too," Hinata said changing the topic. She was also aware that Namiko's mission was supposed to take her to Wave country, which as it stood they could not get into through the waterways according to Ibiki-sensei.

"I'm sure they are both fine. Namiko is strong, so are Sasuke and Kakashi-nii. Shino too. And unlike ours, this is not Neji's first C-rank, so he'll pull through. You should worry more about Neji's mentality when he is out on a mission with his team. Namiko just prays that Neji does not come back with too much 'Youthful' energy." Naruto assured her making her giggle.

Not having anything else to say Hinata reluctantly turned back, "I…will go and ask Anko-sensei if she will allow you to check on her cursed seal." With that, she walked back.

"Hinata-chan," Naruto called out making her pause, "I'm sure we can beat destiny if we really wanted to." He said which to anyone else would have sounded completely out of context.

Hinata too didn't give much outward reaction other than biting her lip before resuming her walk. Though that was enough to show that whatever the context was, she did get it.

"I know I can beat it, but only if you'll want me to," Naruto said softly sensing her moving further from him.

* * *

Author's Notes:

There are quite a few reasons I'm glad this chapter's done. This arc was so badly written, with even worse animation that it felt like torture to me to watch it over again. The seeing idiot MCs for this long, it's just hard to bear with part 1 Naruto.

Anyway, do tell how did you like this chapter. I understand this missions arc has been going on for a long time now. But if you are keeping track (A big if), you would know that there are only two missions remaining. And you have probably guessed which is going to be the last one.

Do try and guess what the context was at the end of the chapter until it is time for the next chapter. Schönen Tag noch!


	21. Curry on!

Happy Valentine's day everyone. I, and the fic, is still alive. One of the reasons this chapter is this late is because I have been working on another fic, which unfortunately is not *cough* appropriate for this site. Also, I had to start working more since I was getting low on the money here. Although, this chapter was ready to be uploaded on New year.

To answer some reviews,

 **SnakethZero -** I understand the MANGA very well, don't worry about that. What you need to understand is Naruto in my fic is absolutely different than original. If this was the original Naruto, then yes you are correct, a team with him, Kiba and Sakura would not work. But as I said, not only is my Naruto different so is Sakura. You say I hate Sakura, true I definitely do. However, I don't think I have acted upon that hate in the main story. Omake, yes. Not the story. I actually started her Training as a med-nin earlier so she can be more useful. However since Namiko, even Naruto is basically a med-nin, her importance is a bit diminished. I believe you were pointing to that fact. And that's true too. **So a spoiler alert, Sasuke and Sakura are not going to play an important role in this story.**

 **Unaymus77 -** Don't you hate it when someone calls you something that you are not? But I get your point and will definitely think about it. However, thank you for pointing out that I was at least able to convey how the Naruto in my story is supposed to be. _*Looks at the reply above*_

 **Kingkong101 -** Obviously. I wonder if you use a different door to get out of your house every day? Or do you end up in the same place, or end up taking the same path just because you use the same door in and out of your house every time? It is used, but I didn't like HOW it was used. So I changed it.

 **godofshinobi -** Ich danke dir, dass du dir die Zeit zum genommen hast, es zu lesen. And I will do my best to start the ass-kicking chapters soon.

That comment from SnakethZero, however, gave me an idea for a series of other stories. A What-if kind of series of stories where one important or even minor character is missing from the Naruto verse and its implications.

The review from KingKong101 also pointed out the flaw in my fic, where the first chapters are unnecessarily separated.

That, however, is for another time. Let's get on with the very late updated chapter.

 **These four months have not allowed me to earn enough money to buy the Naruto franchise. So no, still not mine.**

* * *

Chapter 21: Curry on!

Curry of Life shop with Team 3

After the return of Team Guy to the shop along with Karashi and Ranmaru, Karashi had to go through a punishment that was devised by his mother herself, a 300% spicy curry. Naturally, even though they were not in for any punishments, Guy and Lee ordered the same curry as well. Neji and Tenten, however, ordered the mildest one she could make, for them as well as for Ranmaru.

After dinner, it was time to answer the biggest question: 'What to do with Ranmaru?' The team's original mission, 'Take out the Kurosuki gang' was accomplished. Their self-allotted mission, 'Rescue Karashi' was accomplished as well. Ranmaru was not in their missions list at all.

Though that would be a lie. Ranmaru was an accomplice to Raiga and hence was also a member of the Kurosuki gang. The protocol would suggest bringing him back to the Leaf Village for custody. But they decided to put it off till the next day.

* * *

Next Day

The team, only Neji and Tenten that is, was helping Grandma Sanshou with her shop. Karashi was also supposed to but Lee, sticking to his word, gave the green signal to his training early in the morning. So, he, along with his Sensei who could not sit idle after the word 'Training' was uttered, dragged Karashi off for training.

So here Lee and Guy were doing their regular morning run, with an exhausted Karashi trudging behind them.

"P…please Lee, wait! I'm…gonna…die…" Karashi laboured out, gasping for breath.

Karashi sighed in relief when he heard Guy say, "Okay Lee we will take a short break now". His relief didn't last long however as Guy continued, "So we can do 300 Push-ups!" He immediately dropped to the ground followed by his clone leaving Karashi gaping. To his credit though, he did try to follow

Guy, however, stopped on noticing the darkness that covered the sky.

* * *

In preparation against the imminent storm that was brewing up, Team 3 realised that the Curry of Life shop may need some strengthening. They decided it would be helpful to barrier the shop using some logs.

Lee breathed a sigh after cutting the last log down, "Yosh! This will protect the shop even if a huge storm blows in."

"Thank you all. You really didn't have to." Grandma Sanshou thanked.

"Not at all, Sanshou-san. We owe it to your curry." Guy waved her off.

"Oh my! Compared to you, my Karashi is so idle." She commented.

Neji, who was left out of the grunt-work-turned-into-training along with Tenten, whispered to her, "Hey Tenten, I'm worried about Karashi and Ranmaru being alone back at the shop. We are fine here, why don't you go and check on them?"

Neji's worry turned out to be true though when Tenten didn't find anyone in the shop.

* * *

Somewhere on the Mountains

"Do you mean the Boss is still alive?" Karashi asked Ranmaru, who was on his back. They were walking towards the place where Raiga's apparently not-so-dead body was.

"He is. That Neji person didn't seem to sense it back there, but I could pick up signs of life." Ranmaru replied.

When they finally reached the place, they were shell-shocked to see Raiga's condition. Or at least as much as they could see of him. His whole body was buried under rocks leaving only his arms visible, which were sticking out of the rubble holding his sword straight up.

Ranmaru used to his unique Kekkei Genkai to make sure that Raiga was still alive. However, even using that much of his body caused him to go weak and lose his grip on Karashi's shoulders and fall back on the ground.

Before Karashi could pick him back however, he started to drag himself towards Raiga.

"Raiga, you meant everything to me. I was just waiting to die, but you told me we could survive. Together." He spoke while dragging himself up to one of Raiga's arms. Grabbing the arm he started giving him his chakra, "For me, Raiga, being together with you, was the only time I lived. Don't be gone. No matter what, I can't hold a funeral for you. I won't let you perish like this, even if I have to give you my life." He said trying his best to revive Raiga.

Soon though he ran out of chakra to give and fell unconscious alarming Karashi, who hurriedly moved over to check on him. He tried to wake Ranmaru up but a movement from Raiga startled him. He cradled Ranmaru and rolled back just in time to avoid the bolt of lightning that came raging down on their previous position.

* * *

Tenten, not having found Karashi and Ranmaru back at the shop, had gone in search for them. She already had a hunch where both could have gone, however.

And her hunch ended up being spot on, as she saw both Karashi and Ranmaru at the spot where Raiga had ended up after the fight with her team. She wondered why they were both lying on the ground but a lightning bolt that was a bit too close to her made her fall back.

Down in the valley, the lightning bolt finished the job that Ranmaru started. Using his swords, Raiga channelled the energy contained in the lightning to restart his chakra network before bursting out of the rubble.

Karashi couldn't believe his eyes. The supposedly dead Raiga was standing on his feet again. But he didn't feel relieved or happy. He was just scared, especially now when it seemed that Ranmaru may have exchanged his own life for Raiga's.

Raiga didn't pay much attention to Karashi, however. His eyes were affixed on the unmoving form of Ranmaru, "No! It… can't be." He muttered in shock. He kneeled to cradle Ranmaru, "Ranmaru, quit joking around. It's not funny." He said in disbelief. Only then did he look around. He glared at the first person he could find, Karashi being the only unfortunate one.

"Tell me." He demanded, "Tell me what you did to Ranmaru."

Karashi now even more afraid didn't hesitate to answer, "Nothing! I swear. It was you." He accused, pointing at Raiga, "Ranmaru. He laid his hands on you, boss. And…you came back. And then…he…" Karashi trailed off.

Raiga looked at his hands that were still smoking after taking in that much energy from the lightning. He covered one of Ranmaru's hands in his to warm it up but was met with no response.

That was the scene Tenten witnessed after she came to again. Naturally, she too was surprised to see Raiga alive. Unlike Karashi though she wasn't afraid _, "Raiga? But how? Never mind, I can't let him escape."_

Taking out one of her scrolls, she unleashed a rain of kunais on Raiga. Unfortunately, the former member of seven ninja swordsmen of mist wasn't to be taken lightly. Laying Ranmaru down again, he deflected all of Tenten's kunais using only his swords, shielding himself as well as Ranmaru.

That didn't deter Tenten. Running down the steep wall of the cliff, she took out another scroll and unsealed a long battle chain. She threw the heavy end of the chain off to a side, letting it sink into the ground and continued running around Raiga, forming loops of the chain around him. A tug on the chain and Raiga was effectively bound from head to toe. Tugging on the chain once more, she tripped him and using her open scroll again, launched another volley of kunais at him.

To her disappointment, even after going through all that trouble to immobilize him, Raiga was able to draw lightning from the clouds and deflect the projectiles by conducting the electricity through the chains.

"Pure lighting? But how?" Tenten exclaimed in surprise. Realizing that the chain she was holding could very well be used to hurt her as well, she let it go.

Sadly, Raiga had already realized that possibility, "Too slow!" He exclaimed before using the lightning to break out of the chains. He reeled the broken chain with his sword and released another blast of electricity through it to Tenten. Tenten couldn't get far enough from the electrocuted chain in time and instantly got zapped. She let out a small cry before slumping down on the broad side of a boulder.

Raiga walked forward, shrugging off the remaining pieces of the broken chain, "It's you. You are that weird guy's genin." His casual pace gave Tenten some time to think of a counter-strategy.

Once he reached her, Raiga held both his swords up in a reverse grip and channelled lightning through them, prepared to skewer Tenten with it. Acting quickly, Tenten drew another scroll and unrolled it just before Raiga's swords sunk through the now empty scroll and into the boulder beneath it, narrowly missing Tenten.

The leaf kunoichi had rolled away just in time and was ready with a new weapon, a Bo staff from the sacrificed scroll. _'This wooden staff would do, but I still cannot hold it too high.'_ She thought, glancing at the sky.

Raiga turned around with a snarl. Being an experienced sword-master, he didn't need the dust to settle to know that his blades didn't pierce any skin. His experience, however, made him underestimate his Genin opponent. He casually stepped forward again, but Tenten used her staff skilfully and hit his foot, stopping his advance. He yowled in unexpected pain, and Tenten seized the opening, jabbing his throat and abdomen in rapid succession. She didn't stop there however and continued to press forward. Backing off a little, she drew her staff back and dragged it through the ground and kicked up some dirt directly in Raiga's eyes, blinding him. Instead of taking advantage of that, she backed off again, twirling her staff over her head before advancing again. Raiga tried to stop her by stabbing his sword but Tenten was expecting it. She brought the twirling staff before her, trapping the sword in it, spinning it out of Raiga's hand and threw it back over her shoulder.

Karashi, who trying to climb himself away from the fight, fell on his butt when the stray Fang blade almost took out his fingers.

Tenten next went for the other sword, but soon realised that the same trick would not work on someone of Raiga's calibre when he jammed his sword on the tip of Tenten's staff and discharged another lightning bolt, ripping the staff into shreds and blowing the bun haired kunoichi off her feet.

Not bothering to check what became of his opponent, Raiga turned around and walked up to Karashi, who was still shaking in fear. Raiga lifted his hands making Karashi cover his head with his hands in fear, but a blow never came. Turns out, Raiga was just getting his sword back.

"You know," Raiga started, "I'm not a real smart person." He said before picking up Karashi by his collar, "He's dead and I don't know how it happened. I don't have the slightest idea. So, who killed him? Was it you?" He asked again.

"NO!" Karashi vehemently refused, "It wasn't me…I swear. Maybe…those guys from the leaf village." He lied.

Raiga didn't lie when he said he was not smart and instantly believed Karashi, "You are right. If those guys wouldn't have come, then I could've had Ranmaru with me forever." He said in realisation. He lifted Karashi even higher and demanded, "Where are they hiding? C'mon, you better know where, cause if you don't, you're dead!"

"Yeah, I know…maybe," Karashi wheezed.

His answer received, Raiga dropped Karashi, who cowered away as soon as he touched the ground. Raiga, however, didn't want to dally any longer. "Get up you worm and take me to them. GET UP!" He roared glaring down menacingly at Karashi making him shriek and start moving up the slope.

Raiga stopped and turned around to look at Ranmaru's unmoving form, "Don't go yet Ranmaru. I haven't still given you a funeral. I swear, I'll lay their corpses at your feet." He declared before following Karashi.

* * *

Tenten stirred before sitting up from where she had ended up after being blown away. Looking around she realised she was completely alone, there was no sign of Raiga or even Karashi. She hobbled to her feet, exhausted, that's when she spotted Ranmaru, still lying in the same spot that he had been when her fight began. How could a child sacrifice himself to save someone like Raiga, was the only thing she could think of as she walked up to him.

Her thoughts changed however when Ranmaru flinched and mumbled Raiga's name.

"Ranmaru? You are alive?" Tenten exclaimed before kneeling and holding Ranmaru up. Not getting anything more out of him, she picked him up on her back, determined to not let him die.

* * *

Back at the curry shop, the rest of the team had just finished reinforcing the shop using the logs they had cut when they saw Karashi running towards them. He stopped before his mother and grabbed her by shoulders, "You will never believe what happened. Oh! It was horrible." He cried.

Sanshou obviously didn't know what was going on, "Horrible? What are you talking about Karashi?" She asked.

"It's Tenten, she…" Karashi began in a worried tone making the rest of Team 3 and Sanshou tense.

"What…What happened to her?" Lee asked worriedly.

"She fell off a cliff," Karashi replied.

"What? What are you talking about?" Lee asked again urging Karashi to elaborate.

"We were both running. Lee was still busy, so she told me I could train with her. But then, when we got to lightning pass, a bolt of lightning hit a tree and knocked it towards us. And Tenten…she fell off the cliff all the way to the bottom." Karashi did so.

His words horrified his mother, "How awful! We have to help the poor girl."

Lee was just behind her, "We have to go. Tenten needs our help."

"You are right Lee. And we will help her." Guy didn't hesitate either and agreed.

Neji, however, looked on suspiciously at Karashi. His penetrating gaze making Karashi a bit nervous. "I…will go grab the first aid kit. You guys go ahead. I'll be right behind you I promise." Karashi assured trying to appease the Byakugan-wielder.

Still not fully convinced, Neji had to anyway follow his overzealous teammate as well as sensei, who had already leapt off. ' _In hindsight, even if Karashi was lying, Tenten may still be in danger.'_ Neji thought.

At the shop, Karashi pulled his mother inside as soon as the team was out of sight.

"Karashi…What are you…" His mother tried to ask but Karashi cut her off, "I am going to run away and so are you, mom."

"What are you talking about, child?" Sanshou demanded.

"I'll explain it all later, grab your stuff and let's go." He said putting off the explanation.

However, his mother was not convinced. "Mom, we got to go. I'm begging you." He pushed on.

"No!" Sanshou cried getting out of his hold, "I'm not budging until everyone else comes back."

"You don't get it…" Karashi continued to try to convince her to leave.

* * *

With the rest of the team, Neji was voicing his concerns, "Would lightning and some tree really be enough to send Tenten over a cliff?"

Lee gave his friend a confused look, "What do you mean?"

"I don't know. Perhaps Karashi's training didn't stick." Neji replied.

"That is my fault," Lee admitted sadly.

"Don't feel down, Lee. We failed to change him. Or someone may be threatening him." Their sensei laid out more possibilities.

"But we already beat the Kurosuki family," Lee argued.

"Maybe my eyes were clouded," Neji muttered.

Guy's face immediately took on a more serious visage.

* * *

Tenten had managed to carry Ranmaru to the same shack that they had used to hold him earlier to shelter both of them from the storm. She was currently trying to keep Ranmaru's fever down.

At last, Ranmaru did open his eyes, though his first words after coming to didn't amuse Tenten, "Is Raiga…still down?" He asked weakly.

Although angry that he decided to ask a question like that, Tenten nonetheless obliged, "Raiga got up. But it's about you right now."

"It's alright," Ranmaru said rolling over onto his side facing away from Tenten, "I'm going to be dead soon anyway."

That riled up Tenten even more, "I won't let that happen. You are not getting off that easy. No way! The people whom you and Raiga killed, they all wanted to live, but you didn't leave them that choice. You decided for them." She snapped at him, making him shrink in himself.

Tenten, however, continued, "Well you don't get to decide this time, okay. You are gonna live and you are going to take some responsibility for all those people whose lives you cut short."

Ranmaru knew she was right. But all he could think of was how, even during those dark times, he and Raiga were together. This caused him to stay silent against Tenten's rant. However, a coughing fit broke that silence as well as Tenten's rant and changed it to concern. Her concern however soon shifted from Ranmaru to the shack they were in when it creaked heavily under the storm.

 _'I'll take him to grandma's place.'_ She decided.

* * *

The rest of the team reached Lightning Pass only to have their assumptions proved true. Raiga was already waiting for them, swords poised ready.

"He is alive, you were right," Lee stated the obvious.

"You two wait here. There is no need for you to fight him.", Guy ordered them.

"But Guy-sensei…", Lee tried to argue but his sensei didn't allow him to and rushed in.

"Sensei wait…", Neji too tried to stop his sensei but for a different reason.

That reason presented itself as a bolt of lightning that came roaring down at Guy. He was able to avoid getting zapped though, probably thanks to his aforementioned training to beat his rival.

Admitting his mistake, the bowl haired Jounin turned to his keen-eyed student for the assessment of their predicament, "What is going on Neji?"

Using his Byakugan, Neji observed the sphere of influence of Raiga's attacks.

"He is using real lightning from nature itself to not only boost his own lightning attacks but also cast a net around himself filled with charged molecules so that he can use those bolts on any moving target any time instantly. We would have to dodge his attacks just before it hits us to get close to him." He explained.

Guy nodded, "Leave that to me!"

He charged in again, however, this time decided to circle around Raiga, entering the 'net' tangentially. Just as his student had said, a bolt of lightning came thundering down at his exact location. And as advised, he dodged just before it hit him. A feat that was probably not possible for many.

His dodge was not random either. He used it to reduce the distance between him and Raiga before resuming his circling.

Raiga was obviously not happy with it. "You…! Why don't you just die?" He cursed. It failed to get any answer from Guy, who continued to inch closer.

It was slow, but Guy had closed a lot of distance. Believing it to be his chance to engage Raiga in Close Range Combat, he went for his signature Leaf Hurricane technique. That, however, forced him to move in a straight line, making it easy for Raiga to guess his trajectory.

Not willing to miss that chance, Raiga called down another one of his lightning bolts right in Guy's path, who because of being in mid-air was forced to eat the hundreds of volts of electricity. Again, only his training against lightning type opponents probably allowed him to stay conscious after that. His muscles though refused to budge anymore.

However, that was not all of their plans. Exploiting the distraction provided by his sensei, Neji snuck up Raiga's back with a chakra charged Juken ready. Sadly, Raiga showed that Byakugan wielders were not the only ones who could sense an attack from their back when Neji was hit by a lightning bolt just like his sensei. Unlike his sensei, however, Neji didn't have a tolerance high enough to stay standing and was blown back and down to a lower part of the cliff unconscious.

Raiga was quite pleased with his feat. He laughed at his fallen adversaries, "Hahaha! You gave me a scare there when you managed to avoid all of my lightning. But you messed up at the end. You really are dumb."

"Stop it! How dare you disrespect Guy-sensei like that." Lee who had not joined in on the plan yelled.

Raiga turned his attention to the last one standing, "You. I remember you. You were the brat who was fighting in his sleep. On second thought, no funeral for you! I'll just kill you." He said with a smirk.

If Lee was intimidated, he didn't show it. Instead, he bent down and grabbed something inside his leg warmers. Straightening back up, he pulled out what seemed to be leg weights. The dent they made when they hit the ground as he let them go confirmed the fact.

* * *

With a burlap shielding Ranmaru on her back from the rain, Tenten trudged towards Sanshou's curry shop. She was however surprised to witness Karashi pulling his mother out of the shop when it came into view.

"Karashi, what are you doing?" Sancho cried, trying to pry her wrists from her son's hand.

"I'll explain later, please just come with me!" Karashi tried to reason with her wanting to leave as fast as he could before Raiga could make his appearance. "We have to go now!"

"I'm staying put and that's that!" Sanshou protested before spotting Tenten walking towards them, "Oh! Tenten."

Sanshou wasted no time in bringing Tenten and Ranmaru inside the shop. And Karashi knew he couldn't stop her now either. Especially after Tenten told Sanshou of what actually happened.

"This stupid son of mine did what now!?" She cried bopping Karashi on the head with her spatula.

"Ouch! It…it's not like I had a choice. If the boss would have stayed dead, I wouldn't have done it." Karashi tried to justify, "Look, he's gonna kill us if we stay here, we have to run away!" He followed up trying to save himself and his mother again.

"Go if you want, grandma Sanshou." Tenten said while tending to Ranmaru, "But I'm not running away. I'm not giving up. I will save this child." She told them. She had already taken Ranmaru's wet clothes off and was trying to warm him up.

Sanshou walked up to her and observed the boy.

"Well then, I'll stay and feed the curry of life to this boy." She declared after a slight pause, making Tenten look at her gratefully, "It certainly did the trick with Lee." The shop owner added instilling some confidence in Tenten.

After getting a thankful smile back from Tenten, Sanshou promptly went into her kitchen and started working on the curry.

Karashi gave both a frustrated look. "Well don't blame me if it gets worse.", He told them before running up to his room. He paced back and forth, terrified of what would happen in case the others fail to stop Raiga again. He glanced out of his windows, staring at the clouds afar still raining down lighting, contemplating at everything so far. He could still remember Lee running his marathon in his sleep. He turned around when he got the whiff of his mother's curry and curiosity made him wander downstairs again.

He saw his mother hand a plate of rice and curry to Tenten, who tried to feed it to Ranmaru. However, the boy just turned his face, refusing to eat. Taking another whiff of the curry, he figured out what the problem was.

"You messed up on the blend of spices." He stated before starting to fix the curry, ignoring his mother's surprised gaze.

"I did what? Son, are you honestly telling me you memorised it? My recipe for the Curry of Life?" Sanshou asked in astonishment.

Karashi ignored the question and continued fixing the curry.

Once he was finished, he readied another plate and gave it to Tenten, "Here it is. One genuine order of our signature Curry of Life."

Taking a spoonful of the curry-rice mix, Tenten offered it to Ranmaru again. And again, he turned it down.

Frowning at the stubborn kid, Tenten asked, "Are you so dependent on Raiga, you can't even eat when you are not with him?"

"Why?" Ranmaru asked faintly instead of answering, "Why are you helping me?"

"Do I need a reason to not let you die?" Tenten asked pointedly, "Grandma Sanshou and Karashi put their heart and soul into making this curry. They did it to save you. Don't you feel anything from seeing them trying their best for you like that? Because if you don't feel something, then you are just a horrible human being." She snapped.

Getting herself back together, Tenten continued, "People help each other, whether it's saving a life or just lending a hand. If someone needs help, don't you naturally just step in?"

Ranmaru rolled on his back under his blanket and looked from Tenten to Karashi, who smiled awkwardly, "Well, why don't you go ahead and try it? Just one bite."

Ranmaru looked back at Tenten, finally appearing compliant. He accepted the bite of curry from Tenten. Maybe because he liked it or he was starving, but he hastily sat up, took the plate from Tenten and started gulping the curry-rice down. Tenten herself looked astounded when he did so. She had almost given up on making him eat, voluntarily that is. She was anyway going to force-feed him.

Tenten was surprised even more when Ranmaru finally set the plate down. Having first-hand experience of that ungodly spicy curry, she didn't think he would be able to take more than two bites before desperately looking for water.

She nevertheless took the plate from him and asked, "So was it good?" A small nod from Ranmaru made her continue, "What you are feeling, that's what it feels like to live." She explained leaving Ranmaru wide-eyed, which were shortly filled with tears.

"Raiga…" He stared, "I want him to eat this curry too."

Tenten didn't exactly like that notion, but after what she lectured about helping whoever needed help, she couldn't deny him. In some sense, Raiga also needed help in learning what life was about. So, she stood up and smiled down at Ranmaru, "Let's go then."

* * *

Lightning Pass

Lee had put a good fight against Raiga while his sensei was still recovering from the effects of getting electrocuted. But this time it hadn't gone as well as he had hoped and at the end got zapped just like his sensei.

However, it didn't bring him down.

"Why? Why do you go so far?" Raiga asked him, intrigued.

Standing up weakly, Lee answered with a laboured smile, "I will become so strong, that Guy-sensei can smile at me with pride. Because that is my ninja way."

"I see." Raiga responded, "That explains it. Your whole life is devoted to that sensei of yours." He said looking at the prone form of the said sensei. "Well, then you can be the person to give him a funeral."

Holding his swords together high in the air, he summoned another lightning bolt. But he didn't fire it off right away. He coated himself in lightning and started spinning.

"Ninja Art:", He started while amassing even more lightning as well as wind, "Thunder Dragon Tornado." The wind and lightning continued merging together eventually forming in the shape of a dragon.

Lee had to shield himself from the debris that was being blown at him by the storm dragon. It growled at him, but he was not the target. Instead, it headed straight towards the incapacitated Jounin.

Guy was ready to move by then. He had almost recovered. But storm dragon was, unlike Raiga's other attacks, not very fast. That may have been also why Lee, even though exhausted, overtook the attack which surprised his sensei.

"Lee! Get away!" Guy requested his student. Unfortunately, Lee didn't know that his sensei was ready to counter the attack and really thought that his sensei might die. So he ignored him and pushed him away and took Raiga's attack instead.

"LEE!" Guy yelled.

Inside the storm, Lee was electrocuted multiple times before being blasted off the cliff.

"NO, LEE!" His sensei's voice fell on deaf ears.

* * *

"Hustle now! Hustle!", Sanshou encouraged her son, who was lugging the pot filled with their special curry. They, with Tenten in the front who was carrying Ranmaru, were climbing towards where they guessed others were fighting.

"Come on mom, don't push me, I can't run so fast, this thing is too heavy," Karashi complained.

"That's enough of that. I said, hustle." His mother pressed on.

The bright lights coming from the cliff alarmed Ranmaru, "Please hurry, we don't have much time!"

Tenten wholeheartedly agreed, "Right! You guys, we are gonna go on ahead." She informed the mother-son duo and jumped forward.

She didn't get much far before she crossed a particular shade of green sizzling amid the rubble. Putting Ranmaru down, she plucked Lee out of the rubble and tried to shake him awake, with no avail.

Because of her small head start, Karashi and Grandma Sanshou promptly caught up.

"Grandma Sanshou, please the curry of life!", Tenten requested.

The shop owner didn't waste any time and prepared two plates of rice-curry in a jiffy.

"Nice and hot. Now, get going, we can look after Lee for now. You just worry about getting the curry to Neji and your sensei." Sanshou said while handing both plates to Tenten.

Letting Lee go, Tenten took one of the plates and stood up, "Ranmaru, wait here, okay." She told Ranmaru, who nodded.

"I'm gonna go on ahead and find sensei, take care of everyone." She stated before jumping off.

Once she was out of sight, Sanshou turned to her son, who had flopped down on the ground as soon as they had stopped, and bopped him on the head. Handing him the other plate, she ordered, "You're helping too. Now get your butt over to Neji."

"Sure thing mom, no problem.", Karashi complied immediately by taking the plate and running ahead.

"Now then, I need you to hold Lee's mouth open," Sanshou told the only other conscious person remaining.

Ranmaru looked at her weirdly but didn't complain. Rolling Lee onto his back, Ranmaru used both of his hands to force Lee's mouth open, while Sanshou poured a ladle full of curry into it.

A while passed without any response from Lee which concerned the old woman, "Even the curry of life couldn't help the poor boy." She muttered sadly.

Right at that moment, Lee sprung onto his feet, swept the ladle from her hands and dug right into the pot full of hot curry.

Sanshou, who was knocked down in surprise, watched Lee eat his favourite food with fascination. Ranmaru, who still was new to all this, did the same.

* * *

In another part on the mountain, Karashi had found the unconscious Neji, laying on the ground almost like a dead body.

He tried to shake him awake, which did seem to work.

"Oh good, you are awake," Karashi breathed in relief. He took the plate of rice-curry that was entrusted to him and took a spoonful of it, "Here have some of the Curry of Life, you'll feel better." He spoon-fed the fallen Hyuuga. He was unaware of Neji's weakness against anything spicy, so was surprised when instead of making him feel better, it ended up knocking Neji out again.

"Neji? NEJI!" Karashi's confused scream was not heard by anyone.

* * *

When she reached her sensei, she didn't exactly expect him to stand there, glaring at Raiga while covered in a blue aura, who was glaring back also covered in a blue aura, however, Tenten knew that was lightning.

 _'Guy-sensei is okay'_ , Tenten thought in relief anyway, _'But what is that blue aura around him?'._

"Guy-sensei," Tenten called out, ending the glaring contest and bringing respite to Guy's face.

"Tenten, you are alright. I thought you really fell off a cliff." Guy said.

Tenten sweat-dropped, "No…yeah that was a trap. Anyway, I brought you some curry of life, but clearly, it doesn't seem like you'll need it."

Guy's demeanour immediately became serious again and he turned back to Raiga, "Tenten. Find Lee. He…took an attack for me and I don't know what happened to him."

Before Tenten could answer him that Lee was alright, Raiga interrupted her, "I know what happened to him. He got vapourised. Too bad you won't have a body to bury at his funeral. But I'll send you after him right away, so don't shed a tear just yet."

Tenten tried to refute his statement but was again interrupted. But she needn't have bothered anyway because this time it was Lee himself. Or in appearance it was Lee. It didn't exactly look like he was being himself.

Swinging left to right as if a harsh wind, which was already blowing, would blow him away, Lee took a sloppy fighting pose with half-lidded eyes, "H…*hic*…hey there…*hic* how's it…going…." He slurred all the while between hiccups.

Stopping whatever it was that was causing that blue aura around him, Guy turned to Lee, relieved to see another one of his students alive, "Lee!" He exclaimed.

Lee turned slowly towards the voice, not completely recognizing who called out to him. He squinted his already half-lidded eyes before smiling wide like a kid, "Oohhhh! Guy-senseiiiii…you are…*hic*…here too?"

Before Guy could ask what was wrong with him, Raiga lost his patience, "You little pest. How many times do I have to strike you down?" He snarled and raised his swords to prepare for another attack.

Guy again turned his attention on Raiga set on not letting him hurt his students anymore. However, he needn't have bothered, as following the trend of interrupting people, a new voice came from behind Lee that stopped Raiga.

"Raiga, please stop." Ranmaru's voice rang.

The effect was instant. Raiga stopped gathering chakra and immediately started looking around, "Ranmaru? Where are you? Are you alive?"

"I'm here Raiga," Ranmaru replied coming out from behind the rock behind Lee.

This time it was Raiga's turn to be relieved. "Ranmaru, you are alive." He breathed.

"Yes, please Raiga you have to stop this," Ranmaru requested while coming forward and standing between Raiga and Lee.

His words confused Raiga, "What are you saying Ranmaru?"

"I…brought you the curry of life. I want you to try it." Ranmaru explained though it didn't help Raiga who answered with a confused 'what?'.

"If you do, you'll understand you are not alone. Its spices all blend together, like the feelings of all mankind.", Ranmaru explained further.

"What are you saying?", It really didn't make much sense to Raiga.

"Please, we have to stop." Ranmaru pleaded.

Raiga was baffled by what he was hearing. "No!" He cried while covering his ears, "That's enough. You have always been my eyes and ears. If you don't stop spouting this selfish non-sense, we can no longer be as one."

Ranmaru gave him a sad smile, "Strike me with your lightning then. If I die, the might Raiga falls as well. For we will always be as one." He said making Raiga go wide-eyed.

"Ranmaru, I won't be able to remember you the way you were anymore," Raiga said. Raising his swords high again, he yelled, "I'LL HAVE TO GIVE YOU A FUNERAL!"

Lightning again raced down at Raiga, who used his swords to re-direct it towards Ranmaru and Lee. However, just before it hit Ranmaru, a blue blur passed and carried both him and Lee away.

Before Raiga could understand what had happened, he was already in the air, courtesy of a kick to the chin by Guy.

"Not this again!" He growled and crossed his swords around his chest so that Guy couldn't grab him.

However, Guy never intended to do that. Instead, he jumped even higher than Raiga. Reaching at the end of his rise, he started spinning at such speed, that only the aura around him was visible, which made him look like a top. Allowing gravity to do its work, he came down at Raiga at great speeds and kicked him right in the stomach with all the force that gravity, as well as the spinning action, gave him.

All of this happened so fast that Raiga's pain receptors caught onto the state of his body after it impacted, hard, with the ground, this time burying his whole body.

"Raiga…!" Ranmaru yelled in concern and ran towards him, however his recently obtained ability to walk was still not at a level that he could run and ended up falling face-first onto the ground.

"Ra…n…maru…", Raiga laboured out.

"Raiga please," Ranmaru continued to plead, "Let's stop this. There is so much to do in life, other than giving suffering to others. Come with me."

Raiga's eyes filled with tears, "Ran…maru. I see you have cha…changed. You…have people…who…care for you now." He managed to get out.

Ranmaru nodded even though Raiga couldn't see from his position, "Yes. And you can have people like them too. Please Raiga, I beg you."

"Ha…!" Raiga gave a laboured laugh, "All…my life…I... have only…known to make…oth…others suffer. I cannot…cannot do anything else. Except for one thing." He tried to lift his head up to look at Ranmaru but failed, "Ranmaru, you are finally free now." He said.

Ranmaru's eyes went wide. He could not do anything but watch when lightning came racing down again at Raiga's commands, "COME LIGHTNING, GIVE ME A FUNERAL WORTH REMEMBERING."

A huge explosion followed the lightning hit on Raiga kicking up a huge dust cloud followed by loud rumbling noises, suppressing Ranmaru's anguished cry.

Guy, who had landed behind Ranmaru and besides the now unconscious Lee, looked on and waited for the dust to settle. When it did, however, it only proved Raiga's words. There was no sign of Raiga along with a huge chunk of earth, which probably was the cause of rumbling. Guy could only pick Ranmaru up and let him cry his sorrow.

* * *

It took longer to finish and certainly was more difficult than its rank suggested, but the mission was finally over. After Raiga's grand self-funeral, everyone returned to the curry shop. Neji and Lee had to be hauled there. Turns out there was a misshape when Karashi was preparing the pot of curry to be transported and a bottle of sake had fallen into the curry. Lee, who had basically inhaled most of the curry and was also a big lightweight when it came to alcohol, got immediately drunk which made him act as he did.

Neji's case, however, was more embarrassing. Tenten, after seeing that Guy-sensei didn't need her help, had gone ahead to find out what was taking Karashi so long to find Neji. When she found them, she tried to wake Neji up using the curry before Karashi could stop her and ended up knocking Neji out again.

When it was time to decide Ranmaru's fate, it was decided to leave him with Grandma Sanshou and Karashi. So now he was learning to make the signature curry of life.

"Come on! Let me hear you! You can't make the one and only curry of life unless you put your all into it. Now stir like you mean it." Karashi barked from beside Ranmaru, who was stirring the pot of curry.

Karashi's barking was stopped by a ladle to his head, courtesy of his mother, "It's about a hundred years too soon for you to be preaching about the family curry. You and this child are on equal ground. You are starting your training from the beginning."

Karashi complained but they fell on deaf ears.

"Sanshou-san," Guy started getting the three curry makers' attention, "We must get going now. Thank you for everything you've done for us. Especially the youthful curry."

Lee gave her, his and his sensei's signature thumbs-up, "I know you'll take good care of Ranmaru."

"He is in good hands. His training will be merciless but before you know it, he will be cooking the curry of life." Sanshou claimed.

"But hold on a sec," Sanshou stopped them before they could leave, "The Leaf Village is more than just a hop, skip and jump away you know. I whipped you a special batch that'll give ten thousand times the energy you'll need for the journey." She said while pointing at the table with her ladle, "Now have a seat and get some food in your belly."

Tenten and Neji wished they hadn't turned around because the curry that met them on the table was so red that it almost burned Neji's eyes. Bubbling like hot lava, Tenten couldn't help but comment, "Uhh! That's the reddest curry I've ever seen in my life."

On the other hand, Lee was already drooling over it like an 8-year old kid in a chocolate factory. However, it turned even weirder when their sensei followed suite.

In the end, Tenten and Neji respectfully and politely excused themselves from the curry while they had to watch Lee and their sensei gobble it down.

* * *

AN:

That's that end of Team Guy's mission. Next up is probably the most awaited one (Hopefully), the Wave Mission.

Now for people who are still sticking around for some reason and are reading the Author's Notes. I have decided to merge chapter 1, 2 into one chapter and 3,4and/or 5 into another. So for people who suddenly find that the chapter numbers are decreasing, that would be the reason. Chapter 1 and 2 are already merged and are ready to be updated. That would be done in 24 hours after this chapter goes live. The other three will follow right after.

Till then, Bye Bye.


End file.
